KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 — National men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi has highlighted three contentious umpiring decisions that he believes contributed to the early exit of young Malaysian pair Kang Khai Xing and Aaron Tai in the second round of the Malaysia Masters at Axiata Arena, Bukit Jalil, yesterday.
KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 — National men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi has highlighted three contentious umpiring decisions that he believes contributed to the early exit of young Malaysian pair Kang Khai Xing and Aaron Tai in the second round of the Malaysia Masters at Axiata Arena, Bukit Jalil, yesterday.
The 2024 world junior champions, making their debut in the tournament, put up a spirited fight before losing 10-21, 26-24, 16-21 in 67 minutes to Denmark’s seventh-seeded duo Rasmus Kjaer and Frederik Sogaard.
Herry claimed that at least three questionable calls had a direct impact on the outcome of the match.
“There were three key decisions. One time the shuttle was clearly out, but ruled in. Another time, it was in but called out. That’s two,” he said.
“In the third game, the umpire claimed Aaron touched the shuttle, but the replay shows he didn’t. Aaron managed to avoid it, and if that point had gone our way, the score would have narrowed to 13-14. Instead, it became 15-12 to the Danes,” Herry told reporters.
He added that the Malaysian pair, ranked world No. 58, had no opportunity to challenge the calls as the match was held on Court 2, which did not have access to the review system—unlike Court 1.
Herry believes the questionable decisions placed emotional pressure on the teenage pair—19-year-old Khai Xing and 18-year-old Aaron—and affected their performance.
He hopes the players will recover from the setback and has urged the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to lodge an official protest with the Badminton World Federation (BWF) regarding the umpiring.
Meanwhile, in today’s quarter-finals, Denmark’s Kjaer-Sogaard will face Malaysia’s fourth seeds Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, who cruised past Taiwan’s Liu Kuang Heng and Yang Po Han 21-13, 21-16. — Bernama
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