Happy National Day! Tang Jie-Ee Wei Stay Perfect In Paris To Become World Champs

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 31 (Bernama) -- Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei gave Malaysia the perfect 68th National Day gift - producing a stunning performance of power and finesse to emerge as the mixed doubles world champions at the Adidas Arena in Paris tonight.

The Malaysian world number three were on fire as they overcame second seeds Jiang Zhen Bang-Wei Ya Xin 21-15, 21-14 in 40 devastating minutes to hand Malaysia its first gold medal in the event at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Championships.

The Malaysians, buoyed by shouts of “Merdeka!”, were in an inspired mood, mixing power, precision and patience to send the mighty Chinese pair packing, with Ee Wei masterful at the net and Tang Jie at his leaping best at the back court.

What made the victory all the more satisfying is that Tang Jie-Ee Wei never once flinched despite going into the match with a 1-3 record against the Chinese pair, including a loss at the Japan Open last month. 

Tonight’s victory ends a nearly two-decade wait for the world title, with Malaysia’s previous best-ever achievement in mixed doubles being a semi-final appearance by Koo Kien Keat-Wong Pei Tty at the 2006 edition in Madrid, Spain.

Ee Wei admitted later that their “thirst” for victory came from the significance of the occasion.

“Because this is a World Championships - if you get it, you are a world champion. So, when we were playing in the last 16, we came under a lot of pressure. But then, after that, we overcame it and today we just went with our game plan.

“This means a lot to us because it’s also the National Day, and we had a full house of Malaysian fans supporting us. So, we felt the power and we just kept going and fought for every point,” she said in a BWF audio recording.

Ee Wei also said that previously, whenever they made mistakes, they would get frustrated - so, they decided to make changes.

“So, this time, when we made mistakes, we just re-focused on what we should do and stuck with the game plan. Our coaches kept asking us to take a deep breath each time so we could have a clear mind to play on the court,” she said.

Meanwhile, Tang Jie said words could not describe his feelings, though he was thrilled that others could now refer to them as world champions.

“I think our mental and (physical) preparation for the match was very clear and (we were) very determined. We didn’t think about winning or losing - we just tried to focus on the match and enjoy every moment,” he said.

-- BERNAMA