KLBA president Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos said the tournament is organised as a tribute to badminton legend, the late Punch Gunalan, to remember his efforts and journey to put Malaysia’s name on the international stage a long time ago.

“We have been planning to organise this tournament for the last four to five years. Of course, we will work with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to make this competition a success,” he said.

Jahaberdeen, who is a BAM deputy president, said the Punch Open will have three age groups – Under-12, Under-15 and Under-18.

Gunalan was one of Malaysia’s most talented singles and doubles badminton players. In his heyday in the 1960s and 1970s, he contributed several international medals for Malaysia on the world stage.

His greatest contribution was winning the All England men’s doubles with Ng Boon Bee in 1971. The pair also created history by winning Malaysia’s first gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, in 1970.

After hanging up his racquet, Gunalan became active as a national coach and mentored the national squad to success at the 1992 Thomas Cup in Kuala Lumpur.