KUALA LUMPUR – Finishing top of the group stage at the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships (BAMTC) is important for Malaysia as it would provide the team a smoother path into the semifinals, said Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) high-performance director Tim Jones.
This came following the tournament draw conducted yesterday where Malaysia has been placed in Group B with India, Kazakhstan, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Realising that India would be the strongest opponent in the group, Jones said a lot of analysis is required as they are expected to field some of their strongest players.
“It is important for us to win the group. So, we need to get a lot of analysis done on the Indian players because we know them quite well.
“We have a strong team coming, and we have got good histories against some of their players. So, I am confident.
“Obviously, we want to top the group to make the draw as easy as possible to reach the semi-finals,” said Jones when met at the Malaysian Badminton Academy (ABM), here today.
He also noted that a centralised training will be conducted for the mixed squad – independent and national players – next week to get the players to focus on their mindset.
“I am happy about the mixture that we got, and we are really trying to get the best for Malaysia.
“If things come around soon, we will start the training next week. It is important that we blend well so we could fight together.”
Only the top four teams from BAMTC will be automatically qualified for the Sudirman Cup in May.
The third edition BAMTC will be held in Dubai, UAE from February 14-19.
BAM has named some of their strongest line-up, including independent men’s singles player Lee Zii Jia, men’s doubles world champions Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, and women’s doubles French Open champions Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah.
So far, Malaysia has yet to win the biennial tournament since it was held in 2017. – The Vibes, February 1, 2023
