From Amiril Muttaqien Meketar
HORSENS (Denmark), April 24 (Bernama) -- No partner, no panic. National women’s doubles shuttler M. Thinaah is embracing her role as skipper, ready to lead with belief and a desire to enjoy the game when the Uber Cup Finals 2026 begin here tomorrow.
With regular partner Pearly Tan sidelined with injury, the pressure naturally shifts to Thinaah, who, instead of feeling bogged down, is choosing belief over burden.
Thinaah is, in fact, ready to inspire the youthful squad - half of them newcomers - by keeping things light and easy - and positive - as they prepare for their Group B opener against Turkiye.
“I don’t want to put any pressure on myself or my teammates. As you can see, this is not a senior team, and most of them are juniors, but they are doing very well.
“I've seen their commitment since we came here for the training camp, and over the past few days on the test courts. Everyone is in high spirits. I think it's definitely going to be fun and exciting playing with them,” she said.
Last week, the 26-year-old Pearly withdrew from the Uber Cup Finals due to a recurring back injury, with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) drafting in Chong Jie Yu as her replacement.
Instead of dwelling on the setback, Thinaah intends to build a united and supportive environment within the team, where experience and youth blend to drive the team forward.
Malaysia’s Uber Cup team will feature five fresh faces - Carmen Ting, Ong Xin Yee, Low Zi Yu, Noraqilah Maisarah Ramdan and Jie Yu, all of them from the women’s doubles camp.
The women’s singles challenge will be led by K. Letshanaa, Wong Ling Ching, Siti Zulaikha Azmi and professional shuttler Goh Jin Wei.
After facing Turkiye, Malaysia will take on South Africa on Sunday (April 26) before wrapping up the group stage with a stern test against six-time champions Japan on April 27.
Only the top two teams from each group advance to the quarter-finals of the April 24-May 3 Uber Cup Finals.
-- BERNAMA
