Source: Sipa USA /SOPA Images
[Saba Sports News] The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) announced that male singles player Leong Jun Hao and female doubles player TAN Pearly will serve as co-captains of the national team for the Sudirman Cup in Xiamen, China (April 27 to May 4). In an interview, Rexy Ronald Mainaky, the National Doubles Director of the Malaysian team, stated that the appointment of two captains was made to share leadership responsibilities. If only one captain were chosen, such as Leong, he would need to focus on his own matches and likely wouldn’t have enough energy to look after other teammates. Therefore, it was decided to appoint Tan as co-captain. Rexy Mainaky revealed that both players had shown encouraging leadership skills during the preparatory phase for the tournament. For example, Tan, who used to be more reserved, has now become more proactive in communicating with her teammates; while Leong, who is serving as captain for the first time, views this experience as an important part of his growth. To prepare for the current Sudirman Cup team event, the Malaysian national team held a simulation match earlier this week and arrived in Xiamen on Thursday. In this edition of the tournament, Malaysia has been placed in Group C, with opponents including Japan, Australia, and France.