KUALA LUMPUR – Four players are poised to play pivotal roles in Malaysia’s junior badminton squad’s bid to reclaim their standing as a regional powerhouse before the Asia Junior Championships begin on June 28 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.
Malaysia have not secured a victory in the mixed team event at the Asia Championships since 2009 in Kuala Lumpur, resulting in a 15-year drought in this category.
In the past two editions, the junior squad faced disappointment with no medals, including in individual events.
National junior head coach Jeffer Rosobin refrained from specifying the team’s goals but expressed optimism about improved performances with the selected players.
Jeffer named Muhammad Faiq Haziq for men’s singles, Siti Zulaikha Azmi for women’s singles, and the men’s doubles duo of Aaron Tai and Kang Khai Xing as pivotal to Malaysia’s prospects in the upcoming mixed team event, which kicks off the tournament.
Currently, Faiq ranks seventh in the world junior men’s singles, while Siti Zulaikha holds the sixth position in women’s singles.
Aaron and Khai Xing are now the team’s backbone, as they hold the top spot in the world junior men’s doubles rankings.
Furthermore, this year Aaron and Khai Xing secured two championship titles — the Dutch Junior International and the International Challenge in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, in March.
As a result, Malaysia are expected to progress smoothly from Group B, which includes the United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, and Macau China.
“Our focus is to give it our all because we see a great opportunity in the team event. Our strategy from the outset has been to earn points through our players to secure a strong seeding, which paid off with a fourth seed placement in Group B.
“Our priority now is to take each match step by step, with every player giving their best effort for the team. We’ll adjust our strategy based on our opponents,” said Jeffer when met at Akademi Badminton Malaysia (ABM) in Bukit Kiara today.
Last year’s edition, guided by Datuk Misbun Sidek in Yogyakarta, saw the national squad falter in the quarter-finals against Thailand.
Four years earlier in Suzhou, China, the national squad suffered a humiliating defeat, exiting as early as the group stage.
At the same time, Jeffer expressed confidence in the individual events starting on July 3, right after the mixed team event concluded.
For the individual events, Malaysia are fielding 22 players across five categories, featuring notable athletes such as Faiq, Zulaikha, Aaron, and Khai Xing competing for their last time in this championship.
“We also have a good chance in the individual events, especially considering the strong performances from Aaron and Khai Xing in men’s doubles.
“We’ve observed the strength of teams like China, Korea, and Indonesia in men’s doubles at the recent Dutch International Juniors where Aaron and Khai Xing emerged as champions.
“This year also marks Siti Zulaikha’s final opportunity, and since early February, she has consistently performed well by reaching the finals in Sri Lanka (International) and making it to the semi-finals in both the Austria Open and Bonn Open in Germany,” Jeffer concluded. – June 19, 2024