ASIAN junior champion Leong Jun Hao hopes his injury scare is not a serious one.
On Sunday, the 21-year-old, affected by what seemed like a right hip injury, went down tamely 21-13, 21-8, to Ng Tze Yong in the final of the BAM Invitational Championships at Academy Badminton Malaysia.
Jun Hao, once touted to be the next big thing in Malaysian men's singles, has been struggling to hold his own, since his promotion to the senior squad, after picking up a left hip cartilage tear at the end of 2018.
The Kuala Lumpur-born, who was the 2017 World Junior Championships runner-up, is now worried about another long layoff.
"I don't know how bad my latest injury is but I'm really hoping it's nothing serious," said Jun Hao, who won the division two title of the Invitational Championships last week.
"My previous hip injury was on the left. This time around the pain is on my right.
"It could probably be a muscle strain but I can't say for sure.
"I have not consulted a doctor for some time now since I recovered from my previous injury.
"I just hope it's nothing serious or I'll have to go through the same old process all over again," he added.
If Jun Hao is sidelined again, it will be a huge blow to the national team preparing for the Thomas Cup in Aarhus, Denmark on Oct 3-11.
Earlier this year, Jun Hao played an important role as the third singles as Malaysia reached the final of the Badminton Asia Team Championships in Manila.
Jun Hao also reached the
semi-finals of the Malaysia
International Challenge last November as well as the final of the Bangladesh International Challenge in December.