KUALA LUMPUR: The first day of a two-week centralised training, aimed at psyching up the players for the Thomas-Uber Cup Asian Zone qualifying tournament, began on a stuttering note at the Juara Stadium in Bukit Kiara.
World No. 1 Lee Chong Wei missed the morning session due to illness. Chong Wei is the only player likely to win at least one point in every tie for Malaysia during the qualifiers in Macau, scheduled from Feb 13.
Said national coach Tey Seu Bock: “Chong Wei has called in sick but he has been really focused in training since coming back from the Chinese New Year holidays,” said national coach Tey Seu Bock.
Youngster Mohd Arif Abdul Latif, meanwhile, had to reduce his training time after hurting his knee in a fall but coach Hendrawan brushed aside the incident.
The others, however, seemed completely engrossed with the training session, showing sheer focus and determination.
The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM), however, are showing signs of nervousness, especially with all that talk about the team’s slim chances at the qualifiers.
The BAM issued an official statement yesterday restricting the movement of the media at the training ground.
In another development, the High Performance Team (HPT) will meet today to decide whether to go ahead with their plans to have their second phase of training in Sabah next week.
Some coaches however, felt that the move might disrupt the players’ concentration.
THE STAR
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