Scratch pair Wooi Yik-Aaron Tai stun home pair at China Masters

Malaysia's singles hopes at the 2026 China Masters came to an end today, but the "scratch pair" Soh Wooi Yik-Aaron Tai managed to maintain the national pride by reaching the quarter-finals at the Shenzhen Arena. Despite being a temporary pairing, Wooi Yik-Aaron delivered an impressive upset victory against China's world number 10 pair, Chen Bo Yang-Liu Yi, in straight sets (21-13, 21-18) after just 40 minutes of play in their Round of 16 match.

The Malaysian duo will now face either Hu Ke Yuan-Lin Xiang Yi or He Ji Ting-Ren Xiang Yu in the quarter-finals. The mixed doubles competition saw veteran pair and eighth seeds Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Jemie Lai progress to the last eight after a grueling contest against Japan's Akira Koga-Natsu Saito, ultimately winning 21-14, 19-21, 21-10.

The Malaysians, who have a better head-to-head record against their future opponents, will face China's Gao Jia Xuan-Wu Meng Ying in pursuit of a semi-final berth. However, the singles department's pursuit of success at the China Masters in 2026 has come to an end with K. Letshanaa suffering a defeat to world number two Wang Zhi Yi, losing 10-21, 8-21 in what was her fourth straight loss to the Chinese star.

In the women's doubles, the young pair of Low Zi Yu-Noraqilah Maisarah also had their run come to an end after losing 13-21, 16-21 to China's formidable duo, Jia Yi Fan-Zhang Shu Xian.