KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi admitted that his players’ campaign at the 2025 All England Championships in Birmingham was among the worst performances in his coaching career.
The legendary Indonesian coach, who previously led Indonesia to major badminton successes, saw all three Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) pairs – 2022 world champions Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun, and Wan Arif Wan Junaidi-Yap Roy King – crash out in the first round.
Herry, who officially began coaching in Malaysia last month, said Aaron’s hand injury, coupled with his tactical shift to playing more at the front rather than the back of the court, proved costly for him and Wooi Yik in Birmingham.
“Aaron still has some issues with his hand; it’s not 100% recovered yet. Secondly, he usually plays at the back, but this time, he was often at the front. Regardless of the reasons, they lost,” he told reporters after a training session today, according to Bernama.
Aaron and Wooi Yik lost to Denmark’s Rasmus Kjaer-Frederik Sogaard 16-21, 21-16, 18-21 on Tuesday.
Herry said Wei Chong-Kai Wun also played below par, as they appeared to follow their opponents’ rhythm and were eliminated by China’s He Ji Ting-Ren Xiang Yu, 15-21, 8-21.
As for Wan Arif-Roy King, he noted that they struggled to control their emotions in their debut appearance, leading to their defeat against China’s Huang Di-Liu Yang, 21-18, 16-21, 21-17.
The 62-year-old coach acknowledged that his players need time to adapt to the playing style he wants to implement and plans to conduct an assessment with fellow coach Muhammad Miftah upon the squad’s return from the All England.
Herry did not travel to Birmingham due to visa issues. — March 14, 2025