Malaysia show promise despite Uber Cup exit, says coach Jonassen as young squad gains valuable experience
THERE was no hiding the disappointment of a quarter-final exit, but for Malaysia, the bigger message from the Uber Cup Finals 2026 here is that the journey is far from over.
National singles coaching director Kenneth Jonassen said the 0-3 defeat to defending champions China in Forum Horsens here, today, was not a setback but part of a longer process for a young and developing squad.
Even though Malaysia managed to trouble the 16-time champions in the opening stages, the 51-year-old said the experience eventually made the difference.
“Of course, we knew that China were going to be a big challenge. However, I felt that, in particular, in the first two matches, we were able to shake them a little bit.
“I think we challenged them quite well. But both their level and experience kind of prevailed in those two matches,” he said in the post-match interview.
The national women’s squad got off to a difficult start when world No. 33 K. Letshanaa put up a spirited fight before going down 17-21, 18-21 to world No. 2 Wang Zhi Yi in 47 minutes.
Malaysia came close to drawing level through debutant pair Ong Xin Yee-Carmen Ting, who showed no signs of nerves against world No. 1 duo Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning before falling short 14-21, 21-16, 13-21 after a gruelling 79-minute battle.
China sealed their semi final spot in the third match as their second singles and world No. 4 Chen Yu Fei proved too strong for world No. 37 Wong Ling Ching, 21-10, 21-10 in 36-minutes.
Amid the elimination, Jonassen said there were encouraging signs from individuals, particularly national top women’s singles player Letshanaa, who showed steady progress throughout the tournament.
“I saw some opportunities, I saw some maturity not only today, but also actually during all her matches in this tournament… and I was happy to see that today as well,” he said.
Apart from testing Zhi Yi, Letshanaa also produced a convincing performance against world No. 3 Akane Yamaguchi before going down 19-21, 17-21 in the last Group B tie against six time champions Japan, last Monday.
Meanwhile, Jonassen also pointed out the importance of unity, crediting captain and national number one women’s doubles player M. Thinaah for helping guide a largely inexperienced squad through a demanding campaign which runs until May 3.
While reaching the quarter-finals after 16 years is a milestone, the Dane made it clear Malaysia must resist the temptation to stop there.
“I think all teams coming away will believe they can but I can’t see why we shouldn’t also think that we have the ability to improve. As I said, it takes a lot of hard work, commitment and willingness to work on your own mentality,” he said.
This is Malaysia’s quarter-finals appearance for only the fourth time, matching their best-ever achievement in the competition after previous appearances in 2004, 2008 and 2010.
The national team had opened their Group B campaign with a 3-2 win over Turkiye before thrashing South Africa 5-0 to confirm their place in the last eight.
They finished as Group B runners-up following a 4-1 loss to six-time champions Japan.
