Competition is open for all shuttlers to represent Malaysia in Thomas Cup Qualifying Round
Because of the dip in form of all Malaysian players, except Lee Chong Wei, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) indicates to open up competition for all, national and independent shuttlers, to become a part of national team for the Thomas Cup Qualifying
Round, which is set to take place from February 13-19, in Macau.
However, the condition is to deliver a good performance in the upcoming tournament of Malaysia Open Super Series, which will take place in Malaysia from January 10-15.
Currently, Chong Wei, who is the top seed in the Men’s Singles world standings, is the only reliable player who always lives up to the expectations. But there is no other Malaysian shuttler in all categories of the game who could challenge the top players
of the world.
To qualify for the Thomas Cup Finals has become challenging for Malaysia as country’s best and World Number Six pair of Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong are passing through the worst bad patch and are completely out of form at the moment.
Kenny Goh, the BAM general manager said that the governing body has issued orders to national coaches to select the best possible team for the qualifying round of Thomas Cup Finals.
He said, “All the national singles and doubles coaches have been instructed to select the best players for the qualifying tournament in Macau. We are even willing to open the selection to players who are not part of the BAM set-up.”
He further said, “We are confident that the team will qualify for the Finals and, as usual, we are looking at every aspect to ensure that we only send the best to the competition.”
Malaysia has not much depth in the national squad as besides Chong Wei, no one is there to deliver expected performance when it comes to play against the top shuttlers from China, Korea, Indonesia and Denmark.
However, Malaysia can make the cut if the shuttlers perform well in the upcoming Malaysia Open, which will boost their confidence and will help them to perform well in the Thomas Cup Qualifying Round.
However, all shuttlers need to perform well in the home event of Malaysia Open to regain the required form and confidence and represent Malaysia at the qualifying round of Thomas Cup.
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