EOGENE Ewe (pic) is ready to put his disappointing Malaysia Games (Sukma) outing behind him as he looks to make the most of his first Asian Games campaign in Aichi-Nagoya.
The 21-year-old men’s singles shuttler came under criticism after a lacklustre performance saw him lose to teammate Ayu Fu Sheng, who represented Negri Sembilan, in the second round of last month’s domestic Games.
The defeat came not long after Eogene had been named by the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) in the squad for the Asian Games.
The Perak-born shuttler admitted that the pressure of being the top seed at Sukma had got to him, but said he had learnt from the experience and is determined not to let it affect him again.
“I’ve already turned the page. What happened is in the past and I don’t want to think too much about it because my focus is now on the Asian Games,” said Eogene.
“Actually, my preparation was good at the time, but I admit I felt a little pressured when playing against the junior players.”
Malaysia will begin their men’s team campaign against Mongolia at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium in Aichi today, with Eogene expected to be the third singles behind Leong Jun Hao and Justin Hoh.
He may not get the chance to take to the court if Malaysia wrap up the tie early, but Eogene knows he must be ready should his services be required.
That could become even more important if Malaysia advance to the quarter-finals, where Indonesia await with a stronger men’s singles line-up.
Eogene, however, does not want to burden himself with expectations and is instead focusing on being prepared for any opportunity that comes his way.
“I have prepared well to play as the third singles.
“I don’t want to put myself under pressure anymore. I just want to go out there and give my opponent a tough fight,” he added.
Malaysia will be looking to beat Mongolia and make amends for their early exit at the last Asian Games in Hangzhou 2022, where they lost to South Korea in the first round of the men’s team event.
They are also aiming to end a 12-year medal drought in the event, having last won bronze at Incheon 2014.
