Hon Jian-Haikal Not Overly Focused On Qualifying For World Tour Finals

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 25 (Bernama) -- National doubles shuttlers Choong Hon Jian and Muhammad Haikal Nazri are not overly concerned about their chances of qualifying for the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Finals as they prepare to return to competition at the Korea Masters in early November.

Muhammad Haikal said although still in the running for a Finals ticket, they are focusing on regaining their playing rhythm after taking more than a month off due to injury.

“Before going to the China Open, we had the target (to qualify for the World Tour Finals), but now I told him (Hon Jian) not to get our hopes up too high.

“I think it’s better for us to find our rhythm again because there are many more tournaments next year, like the Malaysia Open,” he said when met at the Badminton Academy of Malaysia (ABM) here today.

The pair, ranked 19th in the world, missed several tournaments after Hon Jian sustained a hip injury during a training session in September.

When asked about Hon Jian's condition, Haikal said he resumed full training two weeks ago.

He expressed his eagerness to return to the court with his partner and aims to give their best performance at the Korea Masters, scheduled for Nov 5 to 10 in Iksan.

“I’m looking forward to getting back to tournaments because it’s been a while since I last competed at the China Open. Hopefully (in Korea), Hon Jian and I can give our best,” he said.

-- BERNAMA