As Malaysia prepares for the Thomas and Uber Cup, a concern has arisen. Former All England Champion Lee Zii Jia has recently been dealing with a muscle strain and even missed part of the national training camp. He remains crucial to the team in the singles lineup.

However, Kennetth Jonnasen, the Malaysian singles coach, had confirmed that this strain isn't considered serious. Proper care is being provided to ensure that Zii Jia is back in form before the tournament. 

"It's a minor thing that he'll be able to overcome, so I don't put any specific focus on this. I just want him to have a speedy recovery and return to the court as soon as possible," said Jonassen.

"At the same time, there is still time, so let's not rush things. It's important that when players join, they are fully fit and able to give 100 per cent."

Even if Lee Zii Jia is still in Malaysia’s plans for now, his inclusion in the singles lineup isn't confirmed yet, considering his streak of early exits in the last few tournaments as well as his physical condition and confidence.

Final squad still undecided

While Lee Zii Jia is carefully trained, the attention has shifted to Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin. Sadikin is another Malaysian men’s singles badminton player, and in the national setup (BAM), with him still under consideration as a backup option. He has trained with the team for 2 weeks now and has been under close evaluation.

"We haven't selected yet, so I cannot really say much about Aidil right now. But he has been training for almost two weeks, and his condition is good," he said.

"At the same time, he brings a high level which we really appreciate, so it's a positive process with him."

As both players, Aidil and Zii Jia, are assessed as Malaysia finalises its squad for the tournament, Jonassen said there's an upcoming 10-day centralised camp in Herning, Denmark, to build cohesion and unity within the team and strengthen it.

With all these things still going on, Malaysia has yet to confirm its final lineup ahead of the Thomas Cup.

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Written by

Aadhya Nalla

Edited by

Siddharth Rawat