Uncategorized

Thomas Cup Season Comes Once Again

April 27, 2006

The [tag]Thomas Cup[/tag] finals are starting soon. Now, now, I can hear you say, “So what?” or “Who cares?” but bear with me here.

As uncool as badminton is in [tag]Malaysia[/tag] now, there are a lot of people who would like to see our boys lift that old silver cup. In the age EPL, Tiger Woods, Formula 1, DOTA, that old racket and shuttle game has been perceived to be relegated to a forgotten pastime played only by rural kids and pudgy old men.

But for those who can remember the fairytale of ’92 and the great battles in the 60’s through the 90’s, the magic of the Thomas Cup is alive.

Granted, our current boys can’t hold a candle to the legends like [tag]Eddy Choong[/tag] and [tag]Wong Peng Soon[/tag] but this is the best we have at the moment, and it is up to them to beat the likes of China, Indonesia and South Korea. Gone are the days when we could cruise into the final and play with our eternal foes [tag]Indonesia[/tag] or the stately Danes, it says a lot about how the other countries have caught up with Malaysia these days.

When we were young, during the hot seasons, we’d be playing with frayed shuttlecocks on the lane of our housing estate, windy months made playing impossible. Later in secondary school, we’d play in rented badminton halls for as low as RM2.00 per hour. (Catholic High School charges, what, RM25 per hour now, don’t they, Patrick?)

If I can, I’ll watch Malaysia’s matches. Maybe, perhaps if the draught blows right, and the groundhog sees his own shadow, and [tag]Lee Chong Wei[/tag] remembers to change the battery on his wristwatch, maybe, just maybe…

For some stuff I wrote about the team and victory of ’92, check these out…
Malaysia Lifts the Thomas Cup: The Story of ‘92 (Part 1)
Malaysia Lifts the Thomas Cup: The Story of ‘92 (Part 2)

9 Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *