PETALING JAYA: Men’s doubles shuttler Mohd Haikal Nazri has come forward to defend himself, stressing that he genuinely suffered a right ankle injury and did not deliberately create an excuse to skip the Swiss Open this week.
His explanation came after national men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi expressed his displeasure over the decision by Haikal and partner Choong Hon Jian to withdraw from the tournament.
The Indonesian coach had also issued a firm warning that he would not waste time on players who refuse to follow instructions, stressing that there are many other men’s doubles pairs in the national squad who are eager for his guidance.
For Haikal, the decision was not an easy one as he admitted he is still dealing with lingering fear after previously suffering a series of injuries.
To make matters worse, he felt pain in his right ankle while in Birmingham before taking to the court against Denmark’s Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in the first round, with the match ending in defeat for him and Hon Jian.
“This is an old injury and I felt it again during training at the All-England Open. I twisted my ankle and informed the coach (Herry) that I might not be able to perform well if I continued to compete in the Swiss Open.
“I always say that it is not about winning or losing. I just do not want to go through injuries again. I have experienced it before and the recovery process took a long time. When it happened again, especially after I had already suffered ankle injuries twice, I decided to skip the Swiss Open because the fear is still there,” said Haikal.
Haikal revealed that almost every part of his body has suffered injuries in the past, with some even requiring surgery.
The 2024 Orleans Masters champion endured one of the toughest periods of his career last year when both he and Hon Jian took turns battling injuries, which inevitably affected their performances.
This year alone, they have competed in five tournaments, but all five campaigns ended in first-round exits.
“This is not about searching for our rhythm. The worry, fear and mental pressure are all there because we have been going through a series of defeats for quite some time.
“I am also worried that my career could end when I am only 24. If the injuries keep happening, it will definitely have an impact,” he added.
