KUALA LUMPUR: The national women's badminton team need to adopt a more assertive and confident approach if they want to achieve greater success on the international stage.
On Wednesday, the Malaysian Uber Cup squad salvaged some pride by defeating Australia 4-1 in the final Group B tie in Chengdu.
However, the win did not change the fact that Malaysia did not qualify for the knockout stage of the competition.
The win comes after a 4-1 defeat to Taiwan and a 5-0 mauling by Thailand in the earlier ties.
Realistically, expectations for the young team to go far in the competition were not high.
But still, fans had expected to see some desire and fighting spirit from the players, who will most likely feature for Malaysia again two years from now.
Captain Teoh Mei Xing said she and her teammates could have done a better job.
A teary-eyed Mei Xing told the Malaysian press she was frustrated with herself for not producing a better performance at the Uber Cup.
"I do appreciate the chance to play in Chengdu. However, as you can see, we only performed in one tie. As such, we need to improve on consistency," she said.
BA of Malaysia (BAM) coaching director Rexy Mainaky acknowledged that the standard of women's badminton in the country is still low.
However, the Indonesian urged the players to show more desire to challenge other top teams.
"Realistically, apart from Goh Jin Wei and maybe Mei Xing, the rest are still at the International Challenge or Super 100 level at most.
"Surely, there is a gap compared to other top players in this competition.
"I saw positive signs in the first tie against Taiwan, but I couldn't accept the attitude of the players in the match against Thailand.
"They showed too much respect to their opponents and looked so afraid before they got on court.
"Yes, we have a lot of homework to be done but players need to show some desire too. For most of them, this was their opportunity to play against some of the best players in the world.
"There is a gap, but what's more obvious is the difference in mindset.
"Hopefully, the players will learn from this Uber Cup experience because in the next edition, they will have to be ready to challenge the top players," said Rexy.
For the record, Malaysia have never made it past the quarter-finals of the Uber Cup since the tournament's inception in 1957.