Herry IP confident of raising Malaysia men's doubles standards

New national men’s doubles coach Herry Iman Pierngadi is fully assured of his abilities to elevate the levels of shuttlers in that department, beginning at the upcoming Asian team meet and All-England.

The Indonesian arrived at the Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM) on Friday to meet some of the shuttlers he will be working with.

He explained why he chose Malaysia as his latest coaching destination, despite receiving offers from a host of countries including China, Thailand and also India.

“I had offers from China while Thailand and India had also approached me. But I chose Malaysia as it is a lot like working in Indonesia.

“The Malaysian pairs have also improved tremendously and we can see similar playing styles with the Indonesian pairs. There are already a few pairs in the top 20 and this is a big encouragement for me to get to work right away,” he said.

The 62-year-old Pierngadi has Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik as his highest ranked pair at fifth, while Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun and Junaidi Arif-Yap Roy King are ranked 12th and 17th.

The revered coach also had the opportunity to witness Man-Tee win the Indonesia Masters title last week, which gave him the assurance they will deliver the goods at the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships (BAMTC) next month.

“From what I noticed at the Indonesia Masters, Man-Tee can give Malaysia a point at the BAMTC group stage,” he added.

Pierngadi has also set another big target which is to end the country’s 18-year for a men’s doubles title at the All-England in March.

The last Malaysian pair to have won at the All-England were Koo Kien Kiat-Tan Boon Heong in 2007.