LETTERS: OUR sports minister and national badminton coach were perceived as confirming a problem between the top women's doubles pair, Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah.
It was after speculation mounted on the lack of communication between the players during a match at the China Masters recently.
They lost to the South Korean pair, Jeong Na-eun-Kim Hye-jeong , 11-21, 21-15, 20-22, in the first round. If it is true that they are having a problem, this is where we should be using the services of a sports psychologist, not just for badminton.
A sport psychologist mentally prepares and assists the athletes to cope with all possible psychological stresses identified during training and competitions in order to enhance their overall professional and personal performance through psychological evaluations and verbal therapy.
In addition, he or she teaches the athletes to demoralise their opponents through facial, verbal and body gestures before and during competition.
Elite badminton players are more vulnerable to specific physical stressors, especially if the demands of their performances enable or qualify them to compete in selective competitions.
Other issues like lack of focus, concentration, composure, goal-setting, nervousness, anxiety and lack of mental preparation are equally important as they can be more damaging to the individual's confidence.
As a result, the performance is inconsistent or erratic.
To overcome them after having identified the cause, a sports psychologist will provide the mental training tools to break through these mental barriers that limit their performance.
The keys to overcoming mental weakness are to maintain a positive attitude, a high level of self-confidence, setting realistic goals, positive self-talk, positive mental imagery, curbing anxiety and emotional control. The sports psychologist, therefore, can assist athletes in improving their mental skills to cope with all kinds of challenges on or off the court, which hopefully will lead to better results.
HENG TEONG TEOH
Kuala Lumpur
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times