THE country’s number one men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik have decided to pull out of the 2022 Japan Open, a day after they were crowned as the world champions in Tokyo.

Badminton Association Malaysia doubles coaching director, Rexy Mainaky, said the injury sustained by Aaron has forced them to withdraw from the tournament.

“Aaron is not feeling comfortable with the condition of his armpit muscle. Even in the final yesterday he did not unleash powerful smashes. So, Aaron does not want to take a risk in the Japan Open and that’s why he made a decision to pull out from the competition,” he told Bernama.

Meanwhile, BAM high-performance director, Dr Tim Jones, said they will do more assessments on Aaron when he returns from Japan.

“However, if it is confirmed to be a minor strain, with good load management and treatment, I believe Aaron will be back at 100% within a few weeks,” he said.

Aaron-Wooi Yik put up a superb performance to topple three-time world champions Mohammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan of Indonesia 21-19, 21-14 in the final of the 2022 BWF World Championships at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium.

Their achievement has not only ended Malaysia’s 45-year wait for the country’s maiden title in the world meet, but also marked Aaron-Wooi Yik’s first-ever title in any tournament since they were paired in 2017. – Bernama, August 29, 2022.