KUALA LUMPUR – It was a favourable draw for the Malaysian men’s and women’s team at the Badminton Asia Team Championships (BATC), which might see the Badminton Association of Malaysia’s (BAM) semifinal target be achievable.
The draw, which was live streamed online earlier today, saw the women’s team placed in Group Y with third seeds Thailand and the 41-ranked United Arab Emirates (UAE), while the men’s team, the tournament’s fourth seeds, were drawn into Group B with Chinese Taipei, Kazakhstan and Brunei.
The top two teams from each group will then qualify for the quarterfinals.
The tournament’s top seeds China will pose the biggest threat and seem to have no problem qualifying out of their respective groups.
In the women’s competition the Asian powerhouse are in Group W with India, which will see both teams qualify for the knockout rounds. They will only play for who will top the group.
The men’s team from China will take on India and Hong Kong in Group A.
National badminton coaching director Rexy Mainaky said that he is confident that both men’s and women’s teams will have no problems making it out of the group stage.
“Malaysia is the host and I’ve been telling all the players to focus on giving the fans something to cheer about and make the nation proud.
“Since we didn’t do well at the Malaysia Open I hope they (the players) will fight and bring pride to the nation at this tournament. We have prepared the players well, unfortunately, some had to be replaced like Justin Hoh who got injured at the last minute but that allowed Leong Jun Hao to step in.
“Our men’s team is strong with Lee Zii Jia leading the men’s singles, but we also have new stars like Eogene Ewe and the doubles pair of Haikal Nazri and Choong Hon Jian,” he said after the draw ceremony.
For the women’s team, Rexy said they need to be more realistic with their target.
“For the singles against Thailand, it would be tough but we have to make sure that we win at least one out of the three singles matches.
“For the doubles, it is 50-50 because Pearly Tan and M Thinaah’s head-to-head record against the Thai’s main pair is good, so it is up to the second doubles match.
“I hope we can go top to avoid China or Japan in the quater-finals,” added the Indonesian.
The competition will be held at the Setia City Convention Centre from February 13 until February 18. – January 30, 2024
BATC 2024 draw
Women’s competition
Group W
– (1) China
– India
Group X
– (4) Indonesia
– Hong Kong
– Kazakhstan
Group Y
– (3) Thailand
– Malaysia
– UAE
Group Z
– (2) Japan
– Chinese Taipei
– Singapore
Men’s competition
Group A
– (1) China
– India
– Hong Kong
Group B
– (4) Malaysia
– Chinese Taipei
– Kazakhstan
– Brunei
Group C
– (3) Japan
– Thailand
– Singapore
– Myanmar
Group D
– (2) Indonesia
– South Korea
– UAE
– Saudi Arabia