KUALA LUMPUR — The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) aims to produce elite shuttlers who can excel over the long term, rather than just standout junior stars, through its new Talent Identification (TID) approach.
Speaking to Scoop, BAM coaching director Rexy Mainaky explained that, for the first time, the national body is focusing on players’ attributes such as on-court focus, character, commitment, and game intelligence, instead of relying heavily on match results.
Last week, BAM concluded a six-day TID programme at Akademi Badminton Malaysia (ABM), involving 46 junior players under the age of 17 from across the country.
Led by Rexy, the TID exercise also included top BAM coaches, such as senior singles head Kenneth Jonassen, junior singles head Datuk Tey Seu Bock, boys’ doubles head Pang Cheh Chang, and girls’ doubles coach Amelia Alicia Anscelly.
Other coaches involved were K. Yogendran, Aaron Lee, Sylvia Kavita Kumares, and Hoon Thien How.
“As far as I can remember, we’ve never used this approach before. In the past, we relied on the Bukit Jalil Sports School for our junior players, and previous TIDs placed heavy emphasis on match-play results,” Rexy shared.
“This time, after discussions with the coaching team, we decided to look beyond that. Junior players mature and peak at different stages, and if we focus solely on match play, we risk missing out on talent who haven’t yet reached physical maturity but lose out to players who are bigger or stronger.”
Previously, match-play results accounted for around 40% of the selection criteria. Earlier TIDs also focused on directly absorbing state or club players into the national senior squad.
BAM is also seeking to address a recurring issue—Malaysia’s history of producing world junior champions who struggle to transition successfully into the senior ranks.
Girls’ singles coach Sylvia, who has international coaching experience and joined BAM last year, believes the new approach is better for identifying players with long-term potential rather than short-term performance.
“One of the main advantages of this method is that it prioritises long-term player development over immediate results,” she said.
“Players develop at different rates—some peak earlier, while others peak later. Judging players solely on their current win rate might not be fair.
“For example, some players may not be winning matches now but have the potential to become top-tier internationals in the future—what we call ‘late bloomers’.”
However, the new system does come with potential drawbacks. Selections are primarily based on subjective assessments by coaches rather than objective match performance data, which could introduce bias.
To address this, BAM has implemented a consensus-based decision-making process, requiring agreement from all coaches and relevant parties involved in the TID.
BAM has yet to make any official announcements about the selected players but is expected to finalise the list next month. — January 24, 2025