Ng Chin Chai accepts erroneous process but supports selection of Hoon Thien – Mohammed Zakry
The president of the Badminton Association of Malaysia, Ng Chin Chai accepts the erroneous selection process of the Men’s Doubles pair of Hoon Thien How-Mohammed Zakry Abdul Latif for the 2011 World Badminton Championships, but supports the decision as, according to him, it was in the best interest of the nation.
He said that the head coach of Men’s Doubles, Rexy Mainaky recommended the selection of the World Number 27 Thien How-Zakry instead of World Number 17 Tan Bin Shen-Gan Teik Chai, who have qualified for the mega event on merit.
It is the rule of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) that two pairs from any country can participate in the World Championships if they come in the top 24 pairs in the world rankings.
While talking about the selection of the players, Ng Chin said, "The process of selection may not be right, where we had to make a decision on the last day (May 12) as I was away on holidays. However, after discussing with the coaches, we honestly believe Zakry-Thien How will provide a better challenge in the World Championships."
Ng Chin further added, "This is based on Rexy's assessment that Zakry-Thien How are the better pair and is based on tournaments and training. We have complete trust in our coaches.”
According to Rexy, the Thien How-Zakry have been playing well for the last six months and their consistent performance in different international events have proved that they are the best for the mega events. Malaysia’s Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong will join forces with this recently selected pair in the World Championships.
According to the regulations, BAM possesses the right to select the players for the major international events and the decision has been taken after a full discussion with all concerned officials of the governing body of badminton. Ng Chai said that improvements will be made in the current selection process but the recent selection of the second pair for the World Championship is the right decision of BAM.
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