PARIS: The Malaysian Paralympic Council (MPC) is aware that there is still a lot of work to be done to strengthen the performances of shuttlers Muhammad Ikhwan Ramli and Noor Azwan Noorlan after their lacklustre performance at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
The two players who competed in the wheelchairs category were eliminated early after managing to win only one match in the men’s doubles event WH1-2 (physical disability) as well as losing their singles matches in their respective classes.
MPC president Datuk Seri Megat D Shahriman Zaharudin said this included drafting a strategy to send both to gain more experience in tournaments, not only in Asia but in Europe and South America too. Overall, it’s a very expensive lesson for them,” he told reporters here.
Muhammad Ikhwan-Noor Azwan who are the second seeded pair in the world were stunned by Japanese pair Daiki Kajiwara-Hiroshi Murayama 21-17, 13-21, 16-21 followed by a second defeat to Chinese pair Qu Zi Mo-Mai Jianpeng 16-21, 6-21.
They then closed their debut campaign at the Paralympic Games with a win over Germany’s Rick Cornell Hellmann-Thomas Wandschneider 21-19 , 21-17 in the Group B competition.
Muhammad Ikhwan, who saw action in Group B of the WH1 men’s singles event, succumbed to South Korea’s Jeong Jaegun, 23-25, 21-17, 13-21 and was again beaten 7-21, 4- 21 by Qu Zi Mo.
Noor Azwan conceded defeat to Chilean player, Jaime Aranguiz, 13-21, 15-21 and ended the challenge in Paris 2024 by losing to Chan Ho Yuen from Hong Kong 11-21, 11-21 in his Group D action of the men’s singles WH2.
Megat D Shahriman admitted that he was also surprised by the performance of Muhammad Ikhwan who did not manage to show encouraging action despite going to Paris 2024 as the second best player in the world and the third choice here.
He said, he wants the 29-year-old player to take responsibility for the slumping performance he experienced at the Porte de La Chapelle Arena and hopes to make up for his mistakes in future sports tournaments or games including the 2026 Para Asian Games in Japan.
“Muhammad Ikhwan need to prove that he has the momentum to succeed in big tournaments and not freeze when required to perform. Maybe you have to change the psychological aspect and be mentally strong,” he said.
