Herry sets Korean physical bar for men's doubles pairs

KUALA LUMPUR: The national men's doubles pairs have delivered a clear rise in silverware this season, winning nine titles across the World Tour and lower-tier events, but coach Herry IP believes quantity alone no longer defines real progress against the world's best.

The nine titles mark a notable increase from last season, when Malaysian men's doubles collected five trophies in total, highlighting improved depth and consistency in Herry's first full year in charge.

This year's success has been spread across several combinations, including three pairs currently ranked inside the world's top 10.

World No. 2 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik led the charge with three titles — the Badminton Asia Championships, Thailand Open and Singapore Open.

World No. 5 Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun added two titles at the Indonesia Masters and Malaysia Masters, underlining their growing status among the elite.

Back-up pair Arif Junaidi-Yap Roy King, ranked 17th, enjoyed a breakthrough season by winning the Macau Open (Super 300).

Former world junior champions Aaron Tai-Kang Khai Xing, ranked 36th, also impressed, lifting three titles at the Malaysia Super 100, Syed Modi International (Super 300) and Guwahati Masters (Super 100).

The wider spread contrasts with 2024, when five men's doubles titles were concentrated among fewer pairs.

Then world No. 7 Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani won the Japan Open (Super 750) before leaving the national setup and later captured the Arctic Open (Super 300) and China Open (Super 1000) as an independent pair.

Aaron-Wooi Yik added the Korea Masters (Super 300), while Choong Hon Jian-Haikal Nazri won the Orleans Masters (Super 300).

Despite the progress, Herry stressed that modern men's doubles is increasingly decided by physical conditioning and workload management rather than title counts alone, pointing to world No. 1 Kim Won Ho-Seo Seung Jae as the benchmark.

"When the level is almost the same, whoever is in better condition will win," said Herry.

"You can't play every tournament anymore. Except for the Korean players, they are above average."

Won Ho-Seung Jae backed that assessment by winning 11 titles this year, including the World Championships.

While the jump from five to nine titles reflects healthier depth, Herry said success at the highest level will hinge on physical readiness as much as tactics.

"Tactics matter, but if the body isn't ready, it doesn't matter how good your plan is," he said.

"The focus now is choosing the right tournaments and making sure the players arrive fresh."

Malaysia's pairs will open their season at the Super 1000 Malaysia Cup in Bukit Jalil from Jan 6-11.

Herry expects further improvement, with special focus on the All England (March 11-16), the World Championships in New Delhi (Aug 17-23) and the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games (Sept 19-Oct 4).