The fate of Akademi Badminton’s youth singles coaching director Misbun Sidek will also be decided next week, said Badminton Association of Malaysia president Norza Zakaria.
A special committee was established today to evaluate the training programme of young players after the squad returned empty-handed from Indonesia.
The junior squad lost 0-3 to defending champions Thailand in the quarter-finals of the mixed team event, while none of the shuttlers qualified for the semi-finals of the individual competition.
Norza said the special committee, led by BAM deputy president V Subramaniam and assisted by BAM secretary-general Kenny Goh will also take into account the views of the technical advisory panel at BAM.
The panel consists of seven former national badminton players including national legend Lee Chong Wei and seven sports executives.
“Wait for next week, generally BAM council members are not satisfied with the performance of the players in the Asian championships, that’s all I can say now,” he told reporters after the BAM council meeting today.
The last time Malaysia won a medal at the junior championships was in 2018 through doubles pair Pearly Tan-Toh Ee Wei who clinched silver, besides helping the then national squad to bronze in the mixed team event.
Last October, Malaysia failed to reach the quarter-finals at the World Junior Championships in Santander, Spain, and finished the mixed team event in ninth place after defeating Denmark 4-1.
For the first time, no national player qualified for the quarter-finals of the individual competition in Spain.
Norza said the council members were saddened by the youth squad’s performance, which was seen to be lagging behind other big powers in the sport.
Although the national players have high rankings, they face problems when facing players from other powerhouses, especially in terms of intensity and mental strength.
“With the facilities provided at ABM… including four-star facilities, it was not translated (by the players) into a five-star performance,” he said.