KUALA LUMPUR: Timesport had reported yesterday that Lee Zii Jia's former coach Indra Wijaya may take legal action against him for an alleged breach of contract.
Lawyer Datuk Seri Jahaberdeen Yunoos, who is known to be an expert on sports issues, said an aggrieved party can sue for damages if there is a breach of contract.
Yesterday, Timesport reported that Indra could take Zii Jia to court after the former Indonesian star was dropped from his professional team last November.
Indra, a former singles coach with the BA of Malaysia (BAM), left the national setup in February 2022 to train Zii Jia after the latter chose to be a professional player.
After guiding the Kedah-born shuttler to the Asian Championships crown and the Thailand Open title in May, the 49-year-old Indra found himself unceremoniously dropped from Zii Jia's team.
The unexpected move came amid a string of poor performances by the former All England champion in the second half of the year.
While the exact content of the contract between both parties remains unknown, Indra told Timesport that he had signed a contract with Zii Jia which runs until 2024.
However, the Indonesian neither confirmed nor denied the fact that he would be taking legal action against Zii Jia who had suffered early defeats in his last three tournaments.
Timesport tried to contact Zii Jia or his manager, Lee Zii Yii today for comments on the issue, but there was no response.
"As a lawyer, I would opine that if indeed there is a contract between the parties, then they are bound by the terms of the contract.
"So if there is a breach by one party, of course the other aggrieved party can sue for damages," said Jahaberdeen, who advises local sports bodies on sports laws.
Following the sacking of Indra, Zii Jia's support team now consist of world No 31 Liew Daren, who acts as his coach and sparring partner, Zii Yii, physiotherapist Sandra Fiedler and physical trainer Lim Joe Heang.
On Thursday, Zii Jia suffered his third straight early exit this season, crashing out in the second round of the Indonesia Masters in Jakarta.
Earlier, Zii Jia was sent packing in the first round of the Malaysia Open, before losing in the second round of the India Open.