KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysian badminton icon Datuk Rashid Sidek believes Ng Tze Yong is better off staying home to focus on regaining fitness, following confirmation the men’s singles shuttler will not be part of the national team heading to the Sudirman Cup.
Tze Yong, who recently returned to action after more than a year out with a serious lower back injury, was left out of the 20-member squad announced by the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) on Sunday.
“Initially, I think BAM wanted to bring him along, which is why they waited until after the Asian Championships to make the announcement,” Rashid told Scoop.
“While it’s great to see Tze Yong return after more than a year, he’s still not at full fitness. In his first-round match against Thailand’s Kunlavut (Vitidsarn), we could see that he was still behind in terms of pace and conditioning.
“Personally, I’d prefer Tze Yong to stay back and focus on improving his fitness and training intensity. If he goes to Xiamen, the squad will be in competition mode, and there won’t be much opportunity for him to train properly.”
Rashid, who previously served as BAM’s singles head coach before leaving the national set-up in 2015, stressed the need to prioritise the 25-year-old’s long-term development.
“Tze Yong has only just recovered from a serious lower back injury. I think everyone needs to be very careful and patient. I fear things can end very badly if he is pushed too hard too soon.”
In the absence of the former Commonwealth Games (2022) silver medallist, the men’s singles duties will fall to Leong Jun Hao and rising talent Justin Hoh.
“I think Jun Hao and Justin are currently BAM’s best options for the men’s singles. From what we saw at the BAC, Justin isn’t too bad,” Rashid added.
In the women’s singles, BAM have called up two-time former world junior champion Goh Jin Wei and K. Letshanaa.
Meanwhile, the men’s doubles line-up will feature newly crowned Asian champions Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, world number two pair Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin Rumsani, and Man Wei Chong with Tee Kai Wun.
For the women’s doubles, Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah—who have recently been rumoured to be exploring an independent route—have been named alongside Go Pei Kee and Carmen Ting.
Mixed doubles duties will be handled by world number three independents Goh Soon Huat and Shevon Lai, as well as Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei—who were recently split up—alongside Hoo Pang Ron and Cheng Su Yin.
Centralised training begins today at the Akademi Badminton Malaysia (ABM), ahead of the Sudirman Cup, which takes place in Xiamen, China, from April 27 to May 4. — April 15, 2025