Hannah urges national shuttlers to step up after early All England exit

KUALA LUMPUR: Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh has urged national badminton players to focus on early preparation and continuous improvement following their early exit from the All England tournament.

Acknowledging the disappointment, she pointed out the increasing competitiveness of the sport, where even top-ranked players struggled to progress beyond the early rounds.

"Badminton is getting more competitive, and we saw that even some of the world's best players were eliminated early.

"Our athletes cannot afford to be complacent, they must train harder and prepare earlier," she said at the Malaysian Lawn Bowls Federation's (PLBM) breaking of fast event at Arena Lawn Bowls in Bukit Kiara tonight.

Malaysia's challenge at the prestigious tournament ended in the quarterfinals when women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah and professional mixed doubles duo Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie bowed out.

Earlier, men's singles player Lee Zii Jia and men's doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik suffered first-round defeats.

The last time Malaysia clinched the All England title was in 2021, when Zii Jia triumphed over Denmark's Viktor Axelsen. This year's campaign marked the first time since 2018 that no Malaysian representatives reached the semifinals.

-- BERNAMA