KUALA LUMPUR, March 28 (Bernama) -- National men’s singles shuttler Ng Tze Yong is not setting any high target for the 2025 Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) in Ningbo, China, his first tournament after more than a year-long break due to a back injury.
Tze Yong said his priority now is to regain the feel of competitive action at BAC 2025, scheduled for April 8-13, after last competing at the 2024 Badminton Asia Team Championships in Selangor.
“I feel my physical progress is at about 80 to 90 per cent.
“What’s important is to avoid getting injured again and to give my best with what I have right now,” he told reporters after a training session here today.
The 24-year-old faces a tough challenge in Ningbo, where he is set to open his campaign against 2023 world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand.
Kunlavut, who won silver at the 2024 Olympics, defeated Tze Yong in both their previous meetings.
Tze Yong played in only three tournaments last season before being sidelined for an extended period following surgery for his back injury.
Previously, singles coaching director Kenneth Jonassen said the Johor-born player must compete in at least one tournament before the end of April to maintain his world number 18 ranking for another six months.
Should he fail to do so, Tze Yong will lose all his ranking points and drop out of the rankings entirely, forcing him to restart from scratch.
-- BERNAMA
