PETALING JAYA: The Lee Chong Wei (LCW) Cup will be the first badminton tournament to use the new scoring format as Malaysia scramble to switch the tempo of their game.
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) announced on Saturday that it had received a majority vote to implement the 15x3 rally scoring format from Jan 4, 2027 onwards.
If the Malaysian Open remains on the calendar in January, the home tournament will be the first to officially use it.
National performance committee director Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei, however, is not waiting.
He said it was imperative to start testing the new system with the juniors. The LCW Cup is for juniors, and the inaugural meet will take place in August.
“The world body has made the decision and we have to follow,” said Chong Wei, who still prefers the current 21x3 scoring system.
“The Badminton Association of Malaysia will look at every opportunity to experiment with this new scoring format in local tournaments, as we need to adapt quickly.
“The LCW Cup will surely use the format. We want our juniors to switch to the new one swiftly.”
Chong Wei said it would be an important transition next year, as the Olympic qualifying period for the 2028 Los Angeles Games will begin.
“We will have the new system for the next Olympics. We see the urgency and we will get the coaches and players to make immediate changes.
“There will be more speed and power in the game. Matches will end faster for sure, and I think we will not have long matches – probably, they can end within an hour.
“This format will benefit attacking players as they will go all out from the opening point,” added Chong Wei.
