Kuala lumpur: Nur Izzuddin Mohd Rumsani and Goh Sze Fei will bid to end Malaysia's 20-year wait for the Asian Games men's doubles badminton gold when they compete at Aichi-Nagoya 2026 later this month.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the last Malaysian pair to achieve the feat were Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong, who triumphed at the 2006 Doha Asian Games, leaving Nur Izzuddin and Goh with the chance to revive Malaysia's fortunes in the event. Despite expecting fierce competition from Asia's leading pairs, Nur Izzuddin believes the pair have a good chance of challenging for the title and has set their sights firmly on gold.

'I think we have a good chance even though many strong opponents will play at the Asian Games, but we will set a high target. Of course (the high target is) the gold medal,' he told reporters during the national squad's training session at the Badminton Academy Malaysia (ABM), Bukit Kiara here today.

Malaysia came close to ending the wait at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games, but Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik had to settle for bronze after their campaign ended in the semi-finals. Badminton is among the sports expected to contribute medals as Malaysia target six gold, seven silver and 20 bronze medals at Aichi-Nagoya 2026, scheduled from Sept 19 to Oct 4.

Meanwhile, national women's doubles player M. Thinaah and partner Pearly Tan are choosing to focus on their own performance rather than dwell on the Malaysian contingent's overall six-gold target. Thinaah said every Malaysian athlete had the ability to excel in their respective events, while she wanted to ensure that she and Pearly competed without regrets on court.

'For us, anything can happen. We just want to do our best and we don't want to have any regrets on the court,' said Thinaah. Earlier, Deputy Chef de Mission (DCDM) Mohamad Azlan Iskandar and Syaidatul Afifah Badrul Hamidi observed the national badminton squad's training session as preparations for Aichi-Nagoya 2026 continued here.