PETALING JAYA: Badminton may not be a traditional stronghold for Saudi Arabia, but former national men’s singles player Hafiz Hashim is helping the nation raise their ambitions on the international stage.
Saudi Arabia’s junior squad captured two titles at the Uganda Junior International, which just recently concluded on Feb 25 in Kampala.
Amer Mohammed emerged as the boys’ Under-19 singles champion after defeating Malaysia’s independent shuttler Lee Shawn 21-12, 23-21 in the final.
Amer then teamed up with Nabiha Shariff in the mixed doubles and overcame Algeria’s Oussama Keddou-Chiraz Halimi 11-21, 21-15, 21-14 to secure a second title.
For Hafiz, although it was a relatively small tournament, it marked an encouraging start not only for him as a coach but also for Saudi Arabia as they begin to set their sights on bigger competitions.
He believes the success has boosted his players’ confidence ahead of the upcoming Asian Junior Championships in Yatsushiro, Japan from June 26 to July 5, as well as their debut at the World Junior Championships in Indonesia.
“Thankful for this early achievement in 2026, especially for the Under-19 juniors. We are preparing for the Asian Junior in Japan and also the World Junior in Indonesia.
“The Saudi team are actually still new to badminton. I started coaching them in August last year, and as you can see, we can already see some improvement,” said Hafiz.
He believes that with time and proper guidance, Saudi players can reach the next level in badminton and eventually challenge players from the established powerhouse nations.
“The Saudi team is positive, realistic and steadily improving. Give us time and we can reach the same level as other countries,” he added.
