KUALA LUMPUR, 10 January 2026 — National mixed doubles coach Nova Widianto admitted that lapses in focus and consistency, particularly in service and receiving, were key factors behind Chen Tang Jie–Toh Ee Wei’s quarter-final elimination at the Malaysia Open 2026, despite entering the match with a clear game plan and physical advantages.
Nova said the national pair should have progressed further but conceded that mistakes at crucial moments allowed their opponents from Hong Kong to pick up points with relative ease.
“First of all, we would like to apologise. This time we failed to reach the minimum target to advance to the final. From the start of the third set, to the last point, we lost a lot of points in the service and receiving position. They appeared not ready to serve and receive the shuttle.
So in just one, two, three strokes, Hong Kong could have grabbed points from there. I think their focus was weak. They can’t maintain constant focus,” he said.
Reflecting on the pair’s overall performance since winning the world title, Nova acknowledged improvements in early-round stability but stressed that true consistency is measured by repeated deep runs into the latter stages of tournaments.
“If you look at performance, they are now a little more consistent. They rarely lose in the first or second round. However, in my opinion, to be truly consistent is to reach the final or semi-finals in a row, that has not yet been achieved,” he said.
Nova added that as top-level players, Tang Jie–Ee Wei must meet expectations tied to their seeding.
“Being top-level players, they need to be consistent. At the minimum level, they need to follow their seeding position. If they are seeded third or fourth, then at least they need to be at that level. After that, only then can they improve because they can no longer lose in the quarter-finals,” he said.
Looking ahead to the Indian Open, scheduled from Jan 13 to 18, Nova urged his players to quickly put the home disappointment behind them and refocus on the next challenge.
“The draw for the Indian Open may be almost the same as here. So I think we need to forget what happened here.
Hopefully we can. If we think that we have lost here and missed the target, I think that situation may cause us to fail again from now on. So I think the result here should be forgotten even though we are disappointed, and we must forget this result,” he said.
Earlier, Tang Jie–Ee Wei were eliminated after a hard-fought 67-minute quarter-final loss to Hong Kong’s Tang Chun Man–Tse Ying Suet, going down 17–21, 21–17, 10–21 at the Axiata Arena.
