Malaysia Masters Badminton Tournament Begins, Led by Lee Jhe-Huei and Yang Po-Hsuan

(Taipei, May 19, CNA) The BWF World Tour Super 500 Malaysia Masters began today. Taiwan's main players have chosen to rest, with a total of 15 pairs starting from the main draw. The men's doubles fourth seeds, Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan, are making their return after nearly a month's break. At the BWF Super 500 Malaysia Badminton Masters, Taiwanese players including men's singles Chou Tien-chen, mixed doubles Ye Hong-wei and Jhan You-jhen, and the resting men's doubles pair Wang Chi-lin and Chiu Hsiang-chieh are not participating. Currently ranked 15th in the world in men's doubles, Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan are Taiwan's second-ranked pair. However, due to respective injuries, they have not competed since the Thomas & Uber Cup team championships on April 24, including last week's Thailand Open. According to the draw, Lee and Yang will face the host Malaysian pair of Tan Wee Kiong and Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub in the first round. The two pairs have faced each other three times in the past, with the Taiwanese pair winning all encounters. In men's singles, three Taiwanese players, led by veteran Wang Tzu-wei, will start directly from the main draw. Wang's first-round opponent will be China's Weng Hongyang, while Lee Chia-hao will face Yuta Okimoto, and Wang Po-wei will play against India's Tharun Mannepalli. As the BWF is holding tournaments in Southeast Asia for four consecutive weeks starting from last week's Thailand Open, many top players from various countries have chosen to rest this week to prepare for the higher-level Super 750 Singapore Open next week and the Super 1000 Indonesia Open starting on June 2.