Why is Malaysia producing many top doubles pairs but not many top singles players? – Steve’s Badminton Blog and Website

Today’s topic is a bit different from the usual topics discussed. It has been something which has been on my mind for quite some time. I thought that it is worth a discussion on the blog.

Malaysia has a history of producing top doubles pairs in men’s doubles, and to a lesser extend, women’s doubles. And lately, Malaysia is also producing some top mixed doubles pairs. When compared against the singles department, there is an obvious void in both the men’s and women’s singles.

Before I go deeper, let’s define what is meant by top player(s). For this argument’s sake, let’s just define it as 5 individual titles in the BWF World Tour / Super Series or the IBF equivalent where they are the champion. I research into this as far back as data is available, which is 1990. There are many country level events as well, but for simplicity sake, I am making this criteria.

The top men’s singles in Malaysia can be counted in 1 hand. Lee Chong Wei (66), Misbun Sidek (9), Lee Zii Jia (6), Rashid Sidek (6) and Hafiz Hashim (5).

The top men’s doubles pairings in Malaysia are as follows: Razif Sidek / Jalani Sidek (21), Tan Boon Heong / Koo Kien Kiet (16), Goh Sze Fei / Nur Izzuddin (8), Chong Tan Fook / Lee Wan Wah (8), Cheah Soon Kit / Soo Beng Kiang (5), Goh V Shem / Tan Wee Kiong (5).

The numbers in the men’s doubles far exceed the number in the men’s singles. In singles, Lee Chong Wei tips the scales with his inhuman feat. If we remove him from the list, the achievements are very modest in comparison with the men’s doubles discipline. There are many times when scratch pairings in men’s doubles work, but because they do not have a streak of wins, I am not considering them here. But what is apparent is that the men’s doubles department outperforms.

Several other nations have a similar predicament, which is Indonesia to a lesser extent and South Korea. Denmark, Japan and Taiwan are the opposite, with their singles players faring much better than the doubles. What gives?

I am speculating here, but it is an interesting thought. Is it because of the centralized or decentralized nature of how the badminton national teams are organized?

Malaysia has a very centralized approach to the badminton national team. Every player goes through the system to reach the national team. Youth players are put into the national program and are trained in the same way, each and every one of them. Given this centralized nature, all players have a similar playing style and also approach. This similarity allows the players to click well in doubles. And having all of the players concentrated in the same location allows for pairing experimentation by the coaches. This has led to the excellence we see in men’s doubles.

South Korea too has a centralized system for their badminton team. And, their best players are always swapping pairings and experimenting. This has led to excellent doubles combinations in both men’s and women’s doubles.

Indonesia too has a centralized approach to their national team set up. And the swapping of pairing happens often too for them, similar to the South Koreans. And we see Indonesia being extremely strong in doubles for both men’s and women’s disciplines.

Indonesia holds the distinction of also being strong in singles. This leads me to talk about the decentralization part of the set up. Indonesia has many badminton clubs and all have their own approaches to the game. The clubs provide a feeder system into the national team. And with Indonesia’s large population and badminton’s popularity there, the stream of talent feeding into the national team is nearly endless.

Singles players develop differently and require a lot of nurturing. In singles, the way of playing can be tailored to suit the personality of the player, and when that happens the player can play with freedom and thrive. This is where a decentralized system works better in my opinion. Different coaches providing tailor made inputs to the player to develop his game helps the player more. And that is perhaps one of the most important reason for successful singles players.

Japan has a decentralized system when it comes to badminton. Clubs which are owned by large corporations have their own teams. These teams feed into the national team. And because of this decentralized system, we see singles players with very diverse approaches to the game. And all this helps the players thrive based on their preferred way of playing.

Denmark too has a decentralized system where clubs nurture the players, who eventually feed into the national set up. And we have always witness world class singles players from Denmark: Morten Frost, Poul-Erik Hoyer Larsen, Peter Gade and Viktor Axelsen.

China has been omitted from the discussion so far, but from what I understand from their system, they have a system similar to the Indonesians. But instead of clubs, they have regional teams who feed into the national team. Given the size of country, there can never be a shortage of talent.

This is mere speculation. But, it is a rather interesting notion. The main reason why I prefer to have Fred train with Han Jian instead of joining the state team too early is primariy for this reason. I do not want him to play in the same way I did when I was a youth player. I want him to learn another way of playing, from someone who has won it all and is living proof that his technique works. Morever, the current practitioners of his technique are still conquering the world, so why not?

That’s it for this entry.

Until the next entry, eat well, get plenty of rest and keep the badminton going!