Thais aim for better results in Cup events
Women’s shuttlers tipped for semi-final spot
>> Thai shuttlers have put the country on the world sports map a long time ago with their success in a number of international events.
World No.4 Ratchanok Intanon became Thailand’s first ever world champion in badminton in 2013 and the country has also enjoyed success at regional competitions like the Asian Games and SEA Games.
In the team championships of the Thomas Cup (for men) and Uber Cup (for women), Thailand still lag well behind the likes of powerhouses China, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan and Denmark.
Thailand’s best performances in these events were second place in the Thomas Cup (1961) and third in the Uber Cup (2012).
The 30th BWF Thomas Cup and 27th Uber Cup Finals in Bangkok from May 20-27 will be a good opportunity for the Thais to better their previous results.
Following the draw on Thursday at the Arnoma Grand Bangkok hotel, the women’s team were grouped with Taiwan, Germany and Hong Kong, while the men’s team were placed alongside Indonesia, South Korea and Canada.
Some local experts are confident that the women’s team will at least reach the last four, while the men are expected to make the knockout stage of the tournament.
Thailand coach Rexy Mainaky predicted that the women’s team will win their group, while the men’s team can hope for a place in the knockout stage as runners-up from their group.
Thirteen-time winners Indonesia are too tough for Thailand, who, if they want to get past the group stage, must beat South Korea and Canada.
Thailand came close to beating South Korea in the quarter-finals of the Asian Championship in Malaysia last month.
Mainaky added that he would feel no pressure coaching the Thai team against his native Indonesia in the group.
Busanan Ongbamrungphan, ranked 23rd in the women’s singles rankings, expected a difficult battle against Taiwan, and added that Thailand cannot underestimate Germany and Hong Kong as well.
World No.11 Nitchaon Jindapol believes that the team can get past the group stage and after that, anything can happen.
Nichaon said she and her team- mates will put in their best efforts in the tournament.
Khunying Patama Leeswadtrakul, president of the Badminton Association of Thailand (BAT), said both the men and women’s teams have been working hard for the tournament, but the Thai women stand a better chance of progressing to the medal rounds.
Patama said: “The women’s team have the potential to reach the last four and if they are in great form, they can even reach the final. For the men’s team, we expect them to qualify for the knockout stage and how far they can go in the tournament will depend on the opponents in each match.”
The BAT president said that the Taiwanese women’s team, led by world No.1 Tai Tzu-ying, will be tough to beat, while Germany are good in the women’s doubles and Hong Kong can be difficult opponents in both singles and doubles battles. DRAW Thomas Cup
Group A: China, India, France, Australia Group B: Thailand, South Korea, Canada, Indonesia
Group C: Taiwan, Japan, Germany, Hong Kong Group D: Denmark, Malaysia, Russia, Algeria Uber Cup
Group A: Japan, India, Canada, Australia Group B: Thailand, Taiwan, Germany, Hong Kong Group C: South Korea, Denmark, Russia, Mauritius
Group D: China, Indonesia, France, Malaysia