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Badminton: Pei Tty-Eei Hui will have it easy in Basel

Wong Pei Tty (right) and Chin Eei Hui will have a hard time in the All England in Birmingham nest week.
Wong Pei Tty (right) and Chin Eei Hui will have a hard time in the All England in Birmingham nest week.

WORLD No 2 Wong Pei Tty-Chin Eei Hui, who face a daunting task in the All England next week, can look forward to making the final of the Swiss Open in Basel on Mar 10-15 as they will not face the Chinese armada.

Pei Tty-Eei Hui's hopes of reaching their first All England final in Birmingham, which begins on Tuesday, look extremely bleak as they need to overcome three strong pairs from China -- Pan Pan-Tian Qing (second round), Zhang Yawen-Zhao Tingting (quarter-finals) and Olympic champions Du Jing-Yu Yang (semi-finals) -- but they have a relatively easier path in Basel.

South Koreans Lee Kyung Won-Lee Hyo Jung are the only pair capable of denying Pei Tty-Eei Hui a place in the final while all three combinations from China and Taiwan's World No 1 Cheng Wen Hsing-Chien Yu Chin are drawn in the top half of the draw.

The Malaysians will meet Petra Hofmanova-Sarka Krizkova of the Czech Republic in the first round and play another easy encounter against the Indian-Canadian combination of Saina Nehwal-Anna Rice.

Pei Tty-Eei Hui are likely to face stronger resistance from South Korea's Ha Jung Eun-Kim Min Jung in the quarter-finals but an upset is unlikely.
Victory will pit them against Kyung Won-Hyo Jung, who haven't lost to Pei Tty-Eei Hui in six meetings, in the semis but the Malaysian pair should be fired up to end their winless streak.

A semi-final victory would surely lift their spirits and this will help Pei Tty-Eei Hui go all out for another famous win over Du Jing-Yu Yang, their possible final opponents.

National doubles coach Rexy Mainaky said that Pei Tty-Eei Hui have found the going tough against the Koreans and sees it as a good chance to break the dry run.

"Pei Tty-Eei Hui have often given the Chinese a run for their money but it is against the Koreans that they have struggled. They are always worried playing the Koreans and this has often resulted in average performance," said Rexy.

"However, Pei Tty-Eei Hui have prepared well for both tournaments and I expect them to give a quality performance.

"The Swiss Open is also a good chance for them to end their losing streak to the top Korean pair."

Reaching the final will also help Pei Tty-Eei Hui maintain their world ranking of two but the title is what they will be aiming for in Basel.

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