Aaron Chia – Soh Wooi Yik upset world number one pair
The final result did not favour the national team who crashed out 1-3 at the hands of China in the semis, but Chia-Soh’s victory gave millions of Malaysians back home a massive lift when they beat Liang Wei Keng-Wang Chang.
The national men’s doubles pair achieved it the hard way too, as they came from a game down to win 15-21, 21-12, 21-17 in an absorbing contest that will go down as one of the Thomas Cup classics.
It proved the country’s top pair can rise to the occasion against the best, which would give them the impetus to do the same at the upcoming Paris Olympics.
Chou Tien-chen takes down Viktor Axelsen
Chou’s victory set the tone for Chinese Taipei to stun favourites Denmark 3-1 and make it to the semi-finals.
This 68-minute showdown played out to be one of the best singles’ matches in this tournament.
Chou won the first game narrowly, conceded the second and showed immense fighting spirit to beat Viktor Axelsen 21-19, 14-21, 21-19, where he later collapsed to the court after winning a terrific final point.
The world number one later walked over and gave Chou a hug in a gesture of great showmanship.
Kento Momota retires with a perfect record
The two-time world champion had already indicated he will retire from international action after the Thomas Cup, and so Momota’s appearance in Chengdu, China came with a great deal of interest.
The Japanese ace did not disappoint, winning all his three matches against Germany, Chinese Taipei and Czechia to commemorate his international career with a perfect record.
Momota was given a grand farewell in Chengdu by all the top stars and former shuttlers that included Axelsen, Anthony Ginting, Taufik Hidayat and even Justin Hoh whom he was scheduled to play against in the quarter-finals.
Momota cited the reason he chose to retire at the Thomas Cup was because he loved team events.
Justin Hoh captures the attention
It was unfortunate Hoh couldn’t play Momota in the fifth match against Japan, but the 19-year-old had already captured the imagination of Malaysians.
This after he displayed great fighting spirit to unsettle Denmark’s Rasmus Gemke in the group stage, a shuttler ranked 158 spots above him.
Hoh’s physique, speed and attacking skills drew praise from fans who urged the national association to carefully groom him into a world class talent.
Hoh has a long road ahead of him, but he will always remember this Thomas Cup as one of the events that kick-started his career.
