Kuala Lumpur: The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) is expected to announce a major coaching staff and players shake-up on Tuesday after its Coaching and Training (C&T) Committee meeting.
The Deputy Director of Coaching of BAM – Rexy Mainaky told Malaysian media that the C&T Committee meeting will be chaired by the Secretary-General of BAM, Datuk Kenny Goh.
“I can’t comment further before the C&T meeting on Tuesday. We will know the details of the restructuring plan after the meeting,” said Mainaky after the closing ceremony of the Purple League Pro-Am 2021 (PLPA) tournament on Sunday.
On December 23, President of BAM Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria stated that he would overhaul the Malaysian badminton squad following the inconsistent performance from players in the last nine tournaments, starting with the Sudirman Cup in Vantaa, Finland, which took place from September 26 to October 3, 2021.
Rexy Mainaky pointed out the World No. 7 men’s doubles pair – Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik were especially being very inconsistent after winning the bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Mainaky said he has set a target for Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik to reach the semi-finals of every tournament they participate in 2022. According to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics gold medalist, the target for Chia/Soh was realistic considering they were ranked seventh in the world.
“We’ve seen the Japanese men’s doubles, Takuro Hoki/Yugo Kobayashi emerged champions of the BWF World Championships and the BWF World Tour Finals. If Aaron-Wooi Yik play consistently and stay focused, they can beat the Japanese pair. This is not an empty talk, but they have the real capabilities to achieve that,” said Mainaky.
“We are not putting pressure on them, but this is a challenge for them. Because to be a world-class player, they have to dare to take up the challenges. This would motivate them to be better,” added Mainaky. He also said that he would meet with Chia/Soh after they return to training after the holidays.
Meanwhile, Mainaky also explained that the pairing of the Rio Olympics mixed doubles silver medalist – Chan Peng Soon with 19-year-old Valeree Siow has not yet been finalized.
“So far, Peng Soon is being paired with Valeree, but we still need some time for them to get familiar with each other. The pairing is not final yet,” explained Mainaky.
Mainaky revealed that in 2022, BAM shuttlers would start with a series of tournaments in Europe starting with the German Open (March 8-13), the All England (March 16-20), and the Swiss Open (March 22-27), before moving to Asia for the Thomas Cup and Uber Finals (May 8-15).
