Racquet sports
World champion Nicol David (left) returns the ball to Natalie Grinham of Australia during the 2006 World Women's Squash Championship in Belfast. Nicol went on to win the match and defend her title.
Of all the racquet sports in Malaysia, badminton has had the longest tradition of success, and it is one of the most popular sports in the country in terms of interest and participation. From villages in rural areas to city back-lanes and housing estates, it is not unusual to see children and adults playing the game. Most schools and public recreation centres have badminton courts and numerous private training centres have been set up.
Badminton is also an exciting spectator sport featuring lightning fast exchanges, an array of movements, spectacular smashes and retrievals. Prestigious tournaments held in Malaysia, such as the Thomas Cup which pits national teams against each other for the title of the top badminton nation in the world, draw huge crowds. The country has been on the world badminton stage since the 1950s when stars like Ooi Teik Hock, Wong Peng Soon and Eddy Choong dominated the prestigious All England Open Championships. Since then, there has been a long string of Malaysian champions in both the singles and doubles events. Recent successes in the All England championships were achieved by Mohd Hafiz Hashim, who won the singles crown in 2003, and Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong who brought the doubles title back to Malaysia in 2007 after 25 years. Malaya won the first three Thomas Cup titles in 1949, 1952 and 1955. The country has been a formidable contender since then, capturing the cup again in 1967. Malaysia last won the cup in 1992 and was runner-up in 2002.
All of Malaysia’s Olympic medals have come from badminton. In Barcelona in 1992, Razif and Jalani Sidek took the men’s doubles bronze. The men’s doubles pair of Cheah Soon Kit and Yap Kim Hock won the silver in Atlanta in 1996, while Rashid Sidek returned with the men’s singles bronze
All of Malaysia’s Olympic medals have come from badminton. In Barcelona in 1992, Razif and Jalani Sidek took the men’s doubles bronze. The men’s doubles pair of Cheah Soon Kit and Yap Kim Hock won the silver in Atlanta in 1996, while Rashid Sidek returned with the men’s singles bronze. Squash has also had a long and illustrious history in the country. Members of the British armed forces played squash in military camps in Malaya in the 1800s, and the game was maintained in private clubs and played primarily for recreation. Squash started to take off as a competitive sport in the country in the late 1970s. The Squash Racquets Association of Malaysia (SRAM) was formed in 1973, and stars like Jerry Loo and S. Maniam began shining at the international level. Good management by SRAM saw a steady stream of world class players emerging. Malaysia is now Asia’s top squash nation, having won the Asian championships several times in recent years. Malaysia’s most successful player is Nicol David, who took the Asian Games gold medal in 1998 and the women’s world title in 2005 and has been ranked world number one ever since. Still in her early 20s, Nicol has already carved her name into the annals of the sport.
Tennis courts were initially available only in private clubs for the wealthier strata of society and it was only in the mid-1970s that public courts became available. The sport is widely popular and numerous local and international tournaments have been organized in Malaysia. Table tennis has been played in the country on an organized basis since 1952. Over the years, Malaysia has achieved some success internationally, notably at the SEA Games.