KUALA LUMPUR: Former world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei is not done yet with the national badminton squad.
After ripping into the players who holidayed ahead of the Petronas Malaysia Open, Chong Wei has lashed out again - this time questioning the Malaysian players' sense of responsibility, given how privileged most of them are.
In fact, the Road to Gold (RTG) committee member is ready to take drastic action by calling for a meeting with Badminton Association of Malaysia Coaching Director, Rexy Mainaky, to try and fix the rot.
"What I can say is that our players are currently very comfortable within the association.
"This is something we need to change; this year is crucial because of the Olympic Games.
"So, I will meet with Rexy to discuss this matter. I want to hear opinions from Rexy and the coaches because they are with the players every day, then I will provide my views or ideas. "All of this is to help the players. We need to do something drastic because there is not much time left before the Olympic Games.
"Players need to be aware of their responsibilities and rise again," Chong Wei, a 12-time Malaysia Open winner said today.
The best performance from the national squad in this year's Malaysia Open came from men's doubles duo Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, who reached the quarter-finals before losing to reigning world champions Kang Min Hyuk-Seo Seung Jae of South Korea. This is the second straight year where no Malaysian shuttler advanced to the semi-finals.
For the record, Chong Wei was the last local player to clinch the Malaysia Open crown, when he beat Japan's Kento Momota in the 2018 men's singles final.