Two English pairs begin a big fortnight in Indonesia by competing in the Indonesian Masters this week.
Eighth seeds Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith kick-off their mixed doubles campaign against Egyptian duo Adham Hatem Elgamal and Doha Hany.
Ellis and Smith reached the quarter-finals of this event last year and a meeting with second seeds Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong of China, who lifted the trophy in 2020, could be on the cards should they reach the same stage this time around.
English hopes will also be resting on the shoulders of Ben Lane and Sean Vandy in the men’s doubles.
They begin with a tricky tie against home favourites Leo Rolly Carnado and Daniel Marthin, ranked 23rd in the world – four places beneath Lane and Vendy.
Victory in that one against could see them face the fourth seeds Malaysians Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, who took the bronze medal home from last summer’s Tokyo Olympics.
Both English duos will hope for strong displays to build momentum into next week’s Indonesia Open, a Super 1000 event.
