KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 — National men’s singles shuttler Ng Tze Yong is thrilled to bits to be playing in front of the home crowd despite going into the 2025 Malaysia Masters Badminton Championships as an underdog.
The 25-year-old feels that he has been improving from one tournament to the other since making his comeback from a back injury and that has only boosted his confidence ahead of the Malaysia Masters 2025, which will be held at the Axiata Arena from tomorrow (May 20) until Sunday (May 25).
“(I’m) excited because it’s been over a year since I last played in Malaysia. I can see obvious improvements in my game since making my comeback from injury at the Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) in April.
“Yes, I will be competing (in the Malaysia Masters) as an underdog as my ranking has plummeted (due to the back injury) but I can’t wait to get back on the court here as I know I will have the solid backing of the home supporters,” he told reporters after the court testing session for the Malaysia Masters here today.
Tze Yong has suffered various injuries, including a muscle tear in his back followed by a spinal injury, since last year and had to undergo a long period of rest and rehabilitation before returning to action in the BAC (April 8-13).
The Johor-born shuttler suffered first-round exits in the BAC in China, the Taiwan Open (May 6-11) and last week’s Thailand Open.
So, surely Tze Yong will want to avoid another early exit when he begins his Malaysia Masters campaign against Hong Kong’s Ng Ka Long tomorrow. — Bernama