PETALING JAYA: With just eight days to go, the women’s singles squad are excited to welcome their new coach, Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin (pic).
One of them Wong Ling Ching has an extra reason to look forward too.
When Iskandar finished runner-up to Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei in the 2016 Malaysian Masters final in the battle for the nation’s No. 1 spot, Ling Ching was only 13 years old.
Although she never had the chance to watch Iskandar play live during his peak, Ling Ching had followed many of his matches.
Ling Ching was also impressed by Iskandar’s coaching stint in Ireland, where he helped shape players like Nhat Nguyen, who has since established himself among the world’s elite.
For her, the excitement lies in having a former player who was known for his flair and fighting spirit to be their coach and hopes the same qualities will be instilled in the women’s singles squad.
“My first impression of him (Iskandar) is that he is a fighter. Whenever he steps on court, he plays with incredible energy and shows great fighting spirit, and that makes me excited about his arrival,” said Ling Ching.
“I’m not setting high expectations, but I do hope there will be improvements. For me, what he achieved in Ireland was very impressive.
“Before this, I had never really noticed any players from Ireland until he coached and developed them, and some of them even qualified for the Olympics and performed very well. So with Iskandar coming in, I believe our performances can be further improved,” said Ling Ching.
It will be a challenging assignment for Iskandar as the new women’s singles coach, with the department currently regarded as the weakest among the five divisions, having yet to produce any notable results.
The current senior women’s singles squad comprises seven players – Eng Ler Qi, Lim Zhi Shin, Shaneesa Shahidi, Oo Shan Zi, Siti Zulakha Azmi, K. Letshanaa and Ling Ching.
Iskandar will officially report for duty with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) on Oct 1, where he will work alongside Misbun Ramdan under the supervision of national singles coaching director Kenneth Jonassen.
It will be a homecoming of sorts for Iskandar, who left BAM in 2018 to pursue a professional playing career before switching paths to coaching with Ireland in 2021.
