Ng Chin Chai wants national team to reach at least in the semi-final of Thomas Cup Qualifying Round
Ng Chin Chai, the chairman of Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) wants the national team to reach at least in the semi-final of Thomas Cup Qualifying Round, which will be held in Macau, in February.
Chin Chai said that the shuttlers must perform well in all matches of the qualifying round. However, if they fail to reach in the semi-final of the tournament they will not be able to qualify for the Thomas Cup Finals.
According to Chin Chai, if the shuttlers fail to qualify for the Finals, they will bring an embarrassment to the country as Malaysia has never lost in qualifying round in the history of this team event championship.
According to the seeding of Badminton Asia Confederation, among the top seven teams, Malaysia has been placed at number five. China is at the top while Korea, Japan and Indonesia are ranked at number two, three and four respectively.
Malaysia is at number five followed by Taiwan and Thailand that have been positioned at sixth and seventh spot in the seeding for the Thomas Cup Qualifying Round.
Four teams will qualify for the Thomas Cup Finals, which means that only those countries will make the cut who reach in the semi-final of the tournament.
China, being the defending champion, has already secured its place in the Thomas Cup Finals. All other countries will compete for the remaining three positions and it is an uphill task for Malaysian shuttlers to prove their worth against the top shuttlers of Asia.
However, Chin Chai is optimistic that Malaysian players will make it to the semi-final stage and secure their place in the Thomas Cup Finals. He also said that this team-event tournament is an opportunity for the back-up shuttlers to prove their potential at international arena.
He said, “There is no better platform for them to prove themselves. I hope both the singles and doubles back-up players will silence the critics with breakthrough performances.”
He further added, “We have a good tradition of qualifying for the Finals and I am confident that our boys will pull it off. I just hope they don’t have to do it the hard way.”
From Monday, on January 30, the players in the national squad will start working in a two-week training camp to prepare for this team event tournament.
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