Jonassen Bullish About Jun Hao's Potential Despite Early Setbacks

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 17 (Bernama) -- New national singles head coach Kenneth Jonassen believes there is potential in shuttler Leong Jun Hao despite his early exits in the 2025 Malaysia Open and the ongoing India Open.

Jun Hao suffered a second-round exit after losing 18-21, 12-21 to China's Weng Hong Yang in the India Open in New Delhi yesterday, having crashed out in the opening round of the Malaysia Open by going down 17-21, 21-16, 13-21 to China's Lu Guang Zu last week.

Jonassen, however, believes that the world number 28 has shown his ability to compete at the highest level, especially against top-ranked players.

The Dane, who joined the national team on Jan 4, hailed Jun Hao’s performance, particularly his ability to mount a comeback en route to stunning world number 8 Li Shi Feng of China 18-21, 21-17, 21-17 in the first round of the India Open on Tuesday.

“I think his first match against Li Shi Feng was a really good game as he dug deep, found all the resources and the right level of play to win it. So, I think it's crucial in a player's development that they get these wins…

“Then yesterday, Weng Hong Yang is a top player and I think the playing style and just allowing the Chinese to have a little more momentum overall, as well as more control of the game, made it difficult for him (Jun Hao),” he told reporters at a training session here today.

As such, the former international hopes to see Jun Hao have more composure, be more confident in his ability and understand his opponents’ strengths and weaknesses.

While acknowledging the tough road that lies ahead for Jun Hao to rise among the world’s top shuttlers, Jonassen said learning from the small things will help the 25-year-old perform much better in upcoming tournaments.

Jonassen pointed out that some of the things Jun Hao needs to focus on are the importance of improving at every rally and sharpening his shots to prevent his opponents, especially the top shuttlers, from gaining momentum.

Meanwhile, the 50-year-old said he was impressed with the dedication shown by the women's singles players to raise their standards.

“The girls definitely have the desire and I'm looking forward to this process as well, just as much as I do with the men's singles but, again, it is a process,” he said.

Last Saturday, Akademi Badminton Malaysia coaching director Rexy Mainaky criticised the national women’s singles players, saying they tended to make excuses, were unwilling to make sacrifices and often complained of exhaustion during training.

-- BERNAMA