National men’s singles head coach Hendrawan said they would still be banking on national number one Lee Zii Jia although the shuttler had quit the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to turn professional. — AFP pic
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 8 – The national men’s badminton squad seem to have an easier passage to advance to the semi-finals of the Badminton Asia Team Championships 2022 after being drawn in Group B with Japan, Singapore and Kazakhstan.
The same, though, cannot be said of the national women’s team, who have been drawn in Group Y with defending champions Japan and India.
At the draw, which was carried out at the Setia City Convention Centre in Shah Alam today, Malaysia, who are the men’s runners-up in the 2020 edition in Manila, managed to avoid three-time champions Indonesia (2016, 2018 2020), India, South Korea and Hong Kong, who have been pitted in Group A.
In the women’s draw, Group Z comprises South Korea, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Kazakhstan.
With teams like China, Thailand and Taiwan not competing in this edition, which will be held at the Setia City Convention Centre from Feb 15-20, the tournament format has been modified and there will be no quarter-finals.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals and, thus, automatically qualify for the 2022 Thomas Cup and Uber Cup Finals to be held in Bangkok, Thailand.
Meanwhile, national men’s singles head coach Hendrawan expects stiff competition for a place in the semi-finals although Japan won’t be sending their top guns.
This, he said, was because Malaysia will be represented by a mixture of experienced shuttlers and youngsters.
He said they would still be banking on national number one Lee Zii Jia although the shuttler had quit the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to turn professional.
“Zii Jia is crucial, especially against Singapore (who will be led by world champion Loh Kean Yew) because it’s 50-50 (between the two shuttlers), if he (Zii Jia) wins, it will be easier (for us). But (men’s doubles) Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik will be one of our key players as well, then we also have Ng Tze Yong and Leong Jun Hao who can handle the pressure too.
“We will also try to give players like Tze Yong and Jun Hao more exposure because there are many tournaments and team championships this year, such as the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and Thomas Cup,” he said after the draw.
Hendrawan also hopes to give every shuttler in the team a chance to play, especially youngsters like Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun, who won the Syed Modi India International 2022 last month, as well as Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin and Lim Chong King. – Bernama