PARIS: It has been a smooth sailing ride for the Malaysians so far in the French Open at the Carpentier Hall. Former national number one pair of Chan Chong Ming-Chew Choon Eng upset top seeds of the A grade tournament - Vincent Laigle-Svetoslav-Stoyanov of France – with a 15-10, 15-4 win to march into the second round. They play against Germany's Franklin Wahab-Arnd Vetters next for a place in the quarter-finals. The outing in the French Open is crucial for the duo. A win will boost their confidence in their chase for a place for the Athens Olympic Games. But if they return home with a defeat, national doubles chief coach Yap Kim Hock will not send the duo for the remaining tournaments that offers valuable Olympic qualifying points. The Olympic qualifying period end on April 30. In a telephone interview from Paris, Chong Ming said,” We have defeated the top seeds but it does not guarantee us the title. We have to be wary of Denmark's Jesper Larsen-Nielsen Fischer. “We may play them in the semi-finals.” Malaysia's second pair in Paris - Koo Kien Keat-Gan Teik Chai – also won their first round match in a convincing fashion. They defeated Germany's Ian Maywald-Marc Zwiebler 15-3, 15-1 to set-up a meeting with Bulgaria's Georgi Petrov-Konstantin Dobrev. In the men's singles, both Malaysia's representatives - Yeoh Kay Bin and K. Yogendran - progressed to the second round. In the first round matches, Kay Bin beat Frenchman Olivier Fossy 15-3, 15-8 while Yogendran defeated Holland's Gerben Bruijstens 15-2, 15-7. Malaysia's challenge in the women's doubles is still alive after second seed Chin Eei Hui-Wong Pei Tty defeated England's Julie Pike-Caroline Smith 15-1, 15-0. They will play Bulgarian Maya Ivanova-Dina Dimova next.
