Malaysia’s top badminton star suspended after leaving national team

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian badminton ace Lee Zii Jia, ranked seventh in the world, was banned from tournaments for two years on Friday (January 21) as punishment for leaving his national team to go independent.

Lee has long been considered the heir to Malaysian legend Lee Chong Wei, rising rapidly up the rankings and scoring a major victory at the prestigious All England Open last year.

After some poor performances in recent months, including at the Olympics, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) revealed this week that he had left the force and wanted to play as an independent.

But the association refused to endorse the move, instead deciding to punish him with a two-year ban from all tournaments sanctioned by the world’s governing body, the Badminton World Federation (BWF).

The BWF sanction the vast majority of tournaments on the badminton calendar, and each country’s association is responsible for registering its players, meaning the Malaysian body can effectively block Lee from competing.

BAM said the 23-year-old had cited “the pressure of being in the national team” and the “regulated lifestyle” at the Malaysian badminton academy as reasons for quitting.

The body tried to persuade him to stay during the talks, but ultimately decided they couldn’t agree to his demands, which included having his own team of coaches and support staff.

“Obviously, we feel extremely sad” about Lee’s decision, BAM Vice President Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos told reporters, adding that it could affect the body’s training programs and finances.

But he added that the player can appeal to return.

Lee, previously seen as one of Malaysia’s best hopes of winning the country’s first Olympic gold medal, has yet to comment publicly since news broke that he was cutting ties with BAM.

World number one Viktor Axelsen of Denmark earlier this week expressed his support for Lee’s decision to go independent, tweeting that “it is his career and his life after all.”

The BWF has not commented specifically on Lee’s case.

But in a statement on Thursday, its general secretary, Thomas Lund, said there was a precedent of independent players and a country’s member association reaching an agreement whereby the association sends tournament tickets to players.

Badminton is one of the few sports in which Malaysia performs well internationally.

Three-time Olympic silver medalist Lee Chong Wei, who retired in 2019, was one of the best players of his generation.