KUALA LUMPUR: The Bdmntn-XL Invitational in Jakarta last week was possibly the ideal event to re-energise World No. 6 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik before their title shot at the Korea Masters which begins tomorrow (Nov 5).
The top Malaysian men's pair had only played in just two world tour events — the Arctic and Denmark Opens last month — since winning bronze at the Paris Olympics in August.
Those two events didn't yield much success as they lost in the second round at the Arctic Open in Finland and failed to defend their Denmark Open title after falling in the last eight in Odense.
A fractured right toe during the Olympics that needed a minor surgery, had sidelined Wooi Yik for two months and the Malaysian pair were under-cooked during their European stint.
They possibly needed something light and easy to perform without pressure and the unique format of the Bdmntn-XL had provided the duo such an opportunity.
They played with different teams — Aaron for the Hurricanes and Wooi Yik for the Lighting — in a revolutionary competition that brought together some of the current and former top players in Jakarta on Oct 31-Nov 3.
The tournament featured five matches per tie — men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and a unique 3v3 format replacing the traditional mixed doubles.
The Hurricanes and the Lighting were joined by the Blitzers and the Rockets who battled it out in a round robin format before proceeding to the final.
Blitzers, led by world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand as well as Malaysian men's doubles player Ong Yew Sin and mixed doubles player Toh Ee Wei, defeated Hurricanes 7-2 in the final of the Bdmntn-XL which offered a total purse of US$1 million (RM4.37 million).
The Hurricanes, besides Aaron, had Teo Ee Yi in their line-up while mixed doubles player Chen Tang Jie was part of the Rockets.
The tournament also included the likes of two-time Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark and Thailand's former world champion Ratchanok Intanon turning out for the Rockets.
Aaron-Wooi Yik will now shift focus to the Korean Masters where they will be seeking a first world tour title this year in Iksan City.
National coaching director Rexy Mainaky is looking forward to seeing a re-fuelled Aaron-Wooi Yik doing well in Korea.
"They didn't play as a pair at the Bdmntn-XL event and the unique format would have also helped them to enjoy the competition and also be relaxed," Rexy.
"I believe the event would have helped them to be re-charged and be focused on the Korean Masters."
Super 300 events are normally skipped by the top pairs and Aaron-Chia are the only top eight pair to play in Korea.
Although it is not a significant tournament on the tour, winning a title would definitely boost the confidence of Aaron-Wooi Yik.
The top seeded Malaysians open their campaign against unheralded Taiwan pair Chiang Chien Wei-Wei Chun Wei in the first round either today or on Wednesday depending on the schedule.
Their biggest threats will be rising China pair Chen Bo Yang-Liu Yi, the World No. 17 who defeated Aaron-Wooi Yik at the Denmark Open, in a possible semi-final clash.
Overcoming the Chinese pair would clear Aaron-Wooi Yik's path of winning their maiden world tour title this year.