TheStar PETALING JAYA: Top doubles player Choong Tan Fook is out of the Sudirman Cup. That comes as no surprise as he is nursing a knee injury and has even pulled out of the Kedah Open starting today. The real surprise is his replacement as Chan Chong Ming’s partner. It's former national number one singles player Wong Choong Hann. National chief coach Yap Kim Hock feels Choong Hann will be ready to play a role in the men's doubles in the world mixed team competition, which will be played in Beijing from May 10-15. “Choong Hann is capable of playing in the men's doubles. He partnered Chong Ming in the group match against Thailand in the Thomas Cup Finals in Jakarta last year,†said Kim Hock. Choong Hann Choong Hann, in fact, started out as a doubles player and even partnered Cheah Soon Kit to win the National Grand Prix Finals in 1997 before making a name for himself in men's singles. Going into the last Olympics in Athens, he was ranked third in the world in the singles. Kim Hock, however, said he had opted for Choong Hann over the youngsters to give the player a chance to improve on his world ranking ahead of the World Championships in Los Angeles in August. Other doubles players available to the coach were Mohd Zakry and Gan Teik Chai. “Choong Hann is currently ranked 11th in the world and this will to give him a chance to better his world rankings position,†he added. Singles players featuring in the doubles also get ranking points. Choong Hann is one of six Malaysian singles players in the top 24 of the world rankings list. The others are Lee Chong Wei (fifth), Hafiz Hashim (eighth), Kuan Beng Hong (14th), Sairul Amar Ayob (20th) and Roslin Hashim (21st). A country can name three players for the World Championships provided all are inside the top 24 on May 19. However, the seedings will only be based on the Aug 5 rankings, making the Sudirman Cup, Singapore Open (June 27-July 3) and Malaysia Open (July 5-10) important. Kim Hock added that Choong Hann's experience in team competitions would also help their mission in Beijing. “Hafiz (Hashim) is also recovering from his injuries and Choong Hann may be an option for the men's singles if the need arises.†The decision to include Choong Hann is a reprieve of sorts for the former national number one, who was not named in the team last week. Malaysia are aiming to gain promotion to Division One and Kim Hock has picked a strong team to shoulder the challenge next month. The players announced in the team last week were national number one Chong Wei, Hafiz, Koo Kien Keat and Chan Chong Ming while the women's players were Wong Mew Choo, Julia Wong, Chin Eei Hui, Wong Pei Tty and Fong Chew Yen. A competition in the Sudirman Cup consists of five ties - men's singles and doubles, women's singles and doubles, and mixed doubles.
Well, the journalist got mistaken there! Doubles matches will give him ranking points in doubles only, none in singles.
Probably what Kim Hock mean is he will play WCH in Men Singles when they play weak team in their group for WCH to add some point. And the journalist had a misunderstanding.
Actually the journalist is right in terms of getting ranking points.. but he forgot to mention for doubles ranking points.
When he says : I understand that he means playing in doubles could improve his 11th world rank (men's singles), which clearly isn't the case!! So I think the journalist did get mistaken somehow...
It may be a short-cut way for Kim Hock to say that Wong CH may get to play one singles match (and one match is enough to get you good ranking points). Previously, he wasn't even in the squad. Maybe the journalist misunderstood.