KUALA PILAH: The Badminton Association of Malaysia must act from now to get ready back up shuttlers for the next edition of the Thomas Cup in 2018, said Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar.
He said this had to be done in view of the fact that some of the shuttlers who played in this year's Thomas Cup will be retiring.
"For the Thomas Cup 2018, BAM must go through a generational change and get ready younger shuttlers to replace the seniors who will be retiring.
"From what I see, from the team that played in the semifinals yesterday, based on the age factor, only Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin, Goh V Shem and Tan Wee Kiong will see action in 2018," he said.
He told this to reporters after attending the Negeri Sembilan-level National Youth Day celebration which was opened by Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.
Khairy also congratulated the national squad even though they did not make it to the final.
"We have to admit Denmark were the better team (in the semis). But overall we did well including beating Asian giants South Korea," he said.
Malaysia lost 2-3 to Denmark in the semifinals in Kunshan, China yesterday. --BERNAMA