Paris: Malaysia’s No. 7 seeds Chan Peng Soon/Goh Liu Ying made a first round exit from French Open on Wednesday after the Rio Olympic silver medalists were beaten by unseeded Dutch pair Robin Tabeling/Cheryl Seinen 21-19, 18-21, 18-21 in 62 minutes.
When contacted by reporter, Malaysia’s mixed doubles coach Pang Cheh Chang said Chan/Goh’s performance was affected by the slow-moving shuttlecock used in the tournament.
“The shuttlecock here was too slow and players needed a lot of focus to maintain their quality of shot during the rallies.”
“However, in the third set, Peng Soon/Liu Ying were impatient and wanted to finish the game quickly. Their opponents instead continue to play rally and ultimately won the game.”
Pang said the pair will return to Kuala Lumpur Thursday to resume their training before competing in the China and Hong Kong Open next month.
On Thursday afternoon, Malaysia’s No. 8 seeds mixed doubles pair Goh Soon Huat/Shevon Jemie Lai managed to advance to the second round by overcoming Mark Lamsfuss/Isabel Herttrich 11-21, 21-12, 21-6.
Goh/Lai will face Marcus Ellis/Lauren Smith of England in the second round.
