KUALA LUMPUR – Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria is disappointed with several key national players who failed to contribute the points against the Indonesians in the Thomas Cup quarterfinal in Aarhus, Denmark.
The players Norza referred to are national singles’ player Lee Zii Jia as well as doubles pair of Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik who were depended on to collect the points against Indonesia.
Although Norza was however satisfied with Malaysia in meeting the quarterfinal target, which was set by BAM, he added that the failure of Zii Jia and Aaron-Wooi Yik proved the young national players are still plagued with the issue of consistencies.
“The players need to strengthen their mental and physical ability, perseverance and sustainability. I want the sports science (staff) and coach to look into this matter immediately,” he said.
Norza said that the national players should emulate the stamina and mental resilience of Indonesian singles player, Jonatan Christie, who played almost every day for a duration of an hour.
“Look at Jonatan Christie’s stamina and resilience in the Thomas Cup, playing every day, for almost an hour matches but still could manage to maintain and deliver the point. I think our players should be groomed to be like that,” he said. – Bernama, October 19, 2021
