THEY say patience is a virtue, and it is beginning to show for independent men’s doubles, Tan Kian Meng-Tan Wee Kiong.

Yesterday, the world No 77 Malaysians pulled off a brilliant 21-11, 16-21, 22-20 win over third seeds Pramudya Kusumawardana-Yeremia Rambitan of Indonesia to check into the second round of the Korea Masters in Gwanju.

Due to their low ranking, Kian Meng-Wee Kiong, who only paired up last October, have not had the luck of the draw and were always up against strong opponents in the early rounds.

However, the Malaysians remain optimistic that they can qualify for the World Championships this year by patiently improving their game.

“It is still early days, and we shouldn’t get carried away, but a win like today (yesterday) definitely gives us the confidence.

“Our goal is to see how high we can go in the world rankings. Once we do that, we can start setting other goals like qualifying for the world meet,” said Kian Meng, who was recently crowned Korea Open mixed doubles champion with Lai Pei Jing.

Kian Meng-Wee Kiong, who reached the Dutch Open final last year, will face Choi Solgyu-Kim Won Ho of South Korea today for a place in the quarter-finals.

Meanwhile, it was the end of the road for Nur Azriyn Ayub-Lim Khim Wah, who suffered a 21-19, 21-18 defeat to Korea’s Gwang Min Na-Jin Seong Noh.

In the mixed doubles, fourth seeds Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai scored a comfortable 21-12, 21-12 win over Korea’s Wang Chan-Jung Kyun Eun to march into the second round.

The Swiss Open runners-up will play Israel’s Misha Zilberman-Svetlana Zilberman next.

Choong Hon Jian-Yap Cheng Wen failed to make an impact and were sent packing by China’s Ou Xuan Yi-Huang Ya Qiong, who chalked up an easy 21-16, 21-5 win.

In the men’s singles first round, former BA of Malaysia (BAM) shuttler Cheam June Wei also crashed out in the opening round, losing 21-11, 21-11 to Korea’s Jeon Hyoek Jin.