Indonesia has become the fifth country to officially withdraw from the Thomas and Uber Cup Finals. The other countries are Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Australia and South Korea.
Through their official website, Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI) underlined three main reasons for the withdrawal and said that they would “immediately send a written statement to BWF (Badminton World Federation) regarding this matter.” It is also mentioned that the decision was taken after discussions with players and the officials of the team.
The three reasons are-
- The player’s concern about the possibility of being exposed to Covid-19, either in travel or at the venue.
- The team voiced their doubts about participating in the tournament because there are no clear indications from the BWF on how a situation would be handled if there were team members who contracted Covid-19. Who would bear the responsibility of handling it and how to handle it has not been clearly indicated
- The governing members of the PBSI, including the General Secretary, Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, Head of Development and Achievement Division agreed to withdraw from the championships based on the above two reasons.
General Secretary of PBSI Achmad Budiharto said, “Everyone was excited because it is such a big opportunity, but with time, and looking at the development of Covid-19 that is still persistent, both in Indonesia and in other countries, has raised doubts among the players.”
It has also been clarified that Indonesian players will not participate in Denmark Open I and Denmark Masters 2020, which are the European leg of tournaments.