Source: REUTERS/CARLA CARNIEL
[Saba Sports News] Chinese actor Wang Xing has gone missing after being deceived into going to Thailand for a movie, suspected to be linked to a telecommunications fraud group, which has sparked heated discussions in the entertainment industry. In the world of badminton, there is also a well-known athlete who was defrauded and lost all her savings—Malaysian player Lai Pei Jing. In the first round of mixed doubles at the 2025 Malaysia Badminton Open, Lai Pei Jing and her partner Tan Kian Meng were leading 17-10 in the first game but were reversed, ultimately losing 0-2. Before the match, Lai Pei Jing announced that this would be her last participation in the Malaysia Badminton Open. Unfortunately, her final performance on home soil ended in the first round, and as she left, she wiped away her tears, leaving fans heartbroken. According to data, Lai Pei Jing is 32 years old and reached a career-high world ranking of No. 5 in mixed doubles, but cracks in her partnership with Tan Kian Meng seem to have begun last year when they mutually unfollowed each other on social media. In June of last year, Lai Pei Jing publicly shared her experience of being a victim of telecommunications fraud on social media, revealing that she was swindled of nearly all her savings. She shared the full story with fans, admitting that she was lured into the scam by a so-called “acquaintance,” which led to the loss of her hard-earned money over more than a decade. Although Lai Pei Jing did not disclose the exact amount she lost, it is estimated based on her earnings from the Badminton World Federation events in the 2022 season that her career prize money alone exceeds $200,000. When including sponsorships and other off-court income, this figure would only be larger.