[Saba Sports News] Recently, Malaysia’s singles coach Kenneth Jonassen made it clear that any player who does not take part in the centralised training camp in Denmark will be excluded from Malaysia’s final squad for the Thomas & Uber Cup.
Jonassen revealed that Goh Jin Wei is an exception, as she is competing in the Badminton Asia Championships, allowing the coaching team to assess her competitive form. She does not necessarily need to be included in the Denmark training camp since she is already preparing for the tournament.
However, the situation is different for independent men’s singles stars Lee Zii Jia and Sholeh Aidil. Having failed to qualify for the Badminton Asia Championships, they have no other platform for the coaching team to evaluate their performance if they skip the Denmark training. The coaching staff cannot select players based on hearsay, so such players will not be named in Malaysia’s final Thomas & Uber Cup squad.
In our view, Lee Zii Jia has publicly stated that the 2026 Thomas Cup will be the last tournament of his career. He has even waived his likeness rights fees to return to the national team, prioritising national honour. Unfortunately, his recurring injury has prevented him from high-intensity training and competition for the time being. His participation will depend on his recovery progress. If he is unable to join the pre-tournament training camp, he will most likely miss the Thomas Cup.