Indra Gunawan asked to coach KL

JAKARTA (JP): Former badminton coach for Indonesia's national squad, Indra Gunawan, was asked by the Malaysia National Sports Council (MSN) to help boost its men's singles shuttlers performance in international events.

Zainal Dahalan, the head of the coaching commission at the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM), said MSN had been negotiating with Indra, who recently finished a contract with the Chinese Taipei national team.

"In our conversation, MSN was offering a contract to Indra as a BAM consultant to help develop badminton in Malaysia," Zainal told Antara in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.

Zainal said MSN was eager to sign Indra as BAM was afraid the senior coach would work for another country.

Malaysian men's singles players have been criticized for their poor form in international events this year, especially after losing in the Thomas Cup championships in May in Kuala Lumpur and the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games in September. (yan)