PETALING JAYA: The mantle may one day pass from Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik to Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun and the young pair gave a glimpse of that future with their spirited World Championships performance.

They played like seasoned pro by holding South Korea’s world No. 1 Seo Seung-jae-Kim Won-ho by the jugular before going down fighting 21-23, 23-21, 15-21 in the men’s doubles quarter-finals at the Adidas Arena in Port de la Chapelle in Paris on Friday.

Seung-jae-Won-ho were the hot favourites in the match but Wei Chong-Kai Wun were not overawed and fought their hearts out before losing narrowly in a thrilling match that lasted 69 minutes.

The world No. 7 pair were left disappointed after their medal hopes were dashed but it had given them the confidence to challenge the Koreans again.

And Kai Wun said their hearts now are set on beating them.

“We wanted to win a medal but we could not. We gave everything but the Koreans were better in the third game,” said Kai Wun in a post match interview with the Badminton World Federation (BWF).

“Overall, our performance was okay but we still need to work on a few things. We want to do better next time.

“The Koreans’ defence is very strong and it was not easy for us to kill the shuttle against them. That’s where we lost some focus and we need to improve on this.”

Wei Chong said: “In the first game, we were trailing but we managed to come back. We could not win the game but we tried to disrupt the Koreans’ rhythm and we managed to take the second game.

“In the third game, were not really consistent and not good enough. That’s where they got a few points.”

It was Wei Chong-Kai Wun’s third consecutive defeat to Seung-jae-Won-ho after also losing to the latter in the Orleans Masters first round in March and Japan Open quarter-finals last month.

Men’s doubles coach Herry Iman Pierngadi though believes his charges’ produced an improved display this time.

“Wei Chong-Kai Wun did better against the Koreans compared to in the Japan Open,” said Herry.

“In the third game, there were still many errors from them. Hopefully, they can beat them the next time they face them.”

It was still Wei Chong-Kai Wun’s best finish in the world meet after exiting in the third round in their debut in 2023.