Wei Chong-Kai Wun face Indonesian spectre

KUALA LUMPUR: The great consistency shown by Indonesia's men's doubles is intimidating to Malaysian pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun.

Thus Wei Chong-Kai Wun are braced for a tough time if they run into Indonesian opposition at the Malaysia Open from Jan 6-11.

Notably, the Koreans, Chinese, Japanese or Danes don't seem to bother Wei Chong-Kai Wun as much.

Out to stamp their mark at the Malaysia Open will be Indonesia's world No. 6 Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Shohibul Fikri, world No. 8 Sabar Karyaman Gutama-Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani and world No. 23 Raymond Indra-Nikolaus Joaquin.

Recent results suggest the challenge posed by Wei Chong-Kai Wun's regional rivals writ large in Kuala Lumpur.

For world No. 5 Wei Chong-Kai Wun, the problem is no longer unfamiliar opponents but familiar patterns.

Indonesian pairs have beaten the Malaysian duo in their last three tournaments — underlining a gap in composure and execution rather than skill.

"We've lost to Indonesian pairs several times already," admitted Wei Chong.

"Their style is quite similar to ours, but they are more consistent. That's where we are still lacking."

This worrying trend was again laid bare at the World Tour Finals in Hangzhou last month, where Wei Chong-Kai Wun lost to Sabar-Moh Reza in the group stage.

This was followed by another loss to the same Indonesian pair at the recent Thailand SEA Games semi-finals, leaving the Malaysians trailing the head-to-head 5-1.

Indonesia has depth too. At the Australian Open in November, Wei Chong-Kai Wun were upstaged by the young Raymond-Nikolaus pairing as they continued to struggle against Indonesian rivals.

Fortunately, Wei Chong-Kai Wun don't have to worry so much about Indonesian threat in the early rounds of the Malaysia Open as the draw keeps the world No. 5 pair away from them.

The last Malaysian pair to win the Malaysia Open were Goh V Shem-Lim Khim Wah in 2014, a drought that adds to the weight of expectation on home soil.

However, Wei Chong-Kai Wun have been handed a tricky opening-round match against Denmark's former world No. 1 pair Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen.

"The most important thing is preparation. If our performance is good, the results will come," said Wei Chong.

Wei Chong-Kai Wun won the Indonesia Masters and Malaysia Masters last year, results that lifted expectations and confirmed their place among the world's elite.

However, their recent setbacks suggest the next step lies in sustaining intensity when matches tighten.

"We don't really look at rankings. Whoever performs better in the tournament will win. Ranking is just a number," Wei Chong added.