V Shem ready for BAM's decision on pairing

KUALA LUMPUR: The country's top doubles player Goh V Shem has left it up to Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to decide whether he would be split from team-mate Tan Wee Kiong.

The 2016 Rio Olympic men's doubles silver medallist said he would agree with whatever decision the association would take following the duo's poor performance.

"I am ready to accept any decision by BAM, because our performance has also not been good enough since the beginning of the year, and we are (feeling down), so we wait for BAM's decision.

"The confidence and communication has been reduced, so we do not want to think much about it because the performance is not satisfactory," he told reporters at the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between BAM and Malaysia Purple League (MPL) here, last night.

The former world number one doubles player raised concerns after a string of inconsistent performances following the silver medal haul at the Rio Olympics, last August, and the team's last title was at the 2016 Super Series Championship in Dubai last December.

In the World Championships two weeks ago, V Shem-Wee Kiong who had been paired since 2014, bowed out in the second round to Chung Eui-seok-Kim Duk-young from South Korea.

Following the defeat, BAM president Datuk Seri Mohamad Norza Zakaria gave technical director Morten Frost and the coaching line-up one week to decide on the partnership.

The 28-year-old said he would continue with his training pending the decision from BAM.

"We have not decided on the next tournament, but we may not participate in the South Korean Open (Sept 12-17) and Japan Open (Sept 19-24) until we get a decision," he said.

V Shem, however, will continue to play for the Petaling BC team in the MPL.

Meanwhile, Mohamad Norza said this was the best time to make a decision on the matter as 2018 was an important year for the players as well as BAM, with major tournaments such as the Commonwealth Games in April, the Thomas Cup in May and the Asian Games in August.

"Their performance at the World Championships is not acceptable and this is not the first time (it has happened). I have asked Morten and (coach) Cheah Soon Kit to come up with the best suggestion on this matter and the decision will be made at the teaching and coaching meeting next week.

"If they decide to split V Shem and Wee Kiong, I want to know why the decision was made. The decision must be based on facts and evidence," he added. - Bernama