PETALING JAYA: National men’s singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao’s struggles on court may now have an explanation.
The country’s No. 1 has been identified as one of the senior players facing disciplinary issues and has been warned that he could be dropped from the national team if the problems persist.
Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) performance committee chairman Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei revealed that the governing body had already issued several warnings to Jun Hao following complaints over his behaviour.
Among the complaints received by Chong Wei were that Jun Hao frequently skipped training sessions and failed to give his full focus during training.
As a result, Chong Wei has given Jun Hao an ultimatum to improve his discipline immediately or risk being removed from the national squad.
“His discipline has been an issue because he has not been focused in training,” said Chong Wei.
“Sometimes he does not turn up. If he misses training because of injury, I can accept that.
“But if it is a disciplinary issue and he intentionally skips training, then there is no excuse.
“I have already told him that if I hear again that he did not attend training, he can pack his bags and leave on his own.
“I do not even need to issue a letter anymore,” added Chong Wei.
Jun Hao’s decline in form in recent months has been noticeable, including his disappointing performances during the Thomas Cup Finals in Horsens, Denmark, three weeks ago.
He also suffered a defeat to Finland’s Joakim Oldorff before his teammates bounced back to help Malaysia secure a 4-1 win in the group stage tie.
Apart from Jun Hao, several other players are also under scrutiny over disciplinary issues, although Chong Wei said he would deal with the matter one step at a time.
The former world No. 1 also revealed that some players had even met BAM president Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz to express their dissatisfaction with the stricter approach currently being implemented by Chong Wei.
However, Chong Wei said he had no choice but to take firm action to ensure the national players return to their best level, stressing that everything starts with strong discipline.
“Maybe many are uncomfortable now because we have a new management and a lot of things have become stricter.
“I know the past few months have not been easy.
“Some people are unhappy, some have complained and some players have even met the president. It’s okay, we will continue with what we are doing,” added Chong Wei.
