Malaysian Badminton Player Receives Death Threats After First-Round Defeat In Indonesia

Malaysian badminton player Ong Yew Sin received violent death threats on Instagram after losing in the first round of the Indonesia Masters tournament with partner Teo Ee Yi.

Fernando Fong

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Malaysian men’s doubles player Ong Yew Sin has become the latest target of online abuse after he and partner Teo Ee Yi were knocked out in the opening round of the Indonesia Masters badminton tournament in Jakarta on Tuesday (20 January).

Ong shared screenshots of threatening messages on social media, including threats to slash Teo’s hand, following their 18-21, 15-21 defeat to Chinese Taipei’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan at Istora Senayan.

“You all should just retire. What I say, I will do everything I can to force you to retire,” read one message from an Instagram account named jaychen73.

If you continue to fail and lose to opponents that shouldn’t be a problem for you, one day I will come and bad things will happen.

The message went on to threaten violence: “I will bring a knife and slash Ee Yi’s hand, forcing you to either change partners or retire.”

I need translation, mesti ada death threats kat dm ni. pic.twitter.com/rTdhRsTS8O
— na. (@jiwonieranika) January 20, 2026

Online Abuse and Gambling Concerns

The online attack against the national shuttlers is the latest in a series of threats directed at Malaysian badminton players.

In October last year, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) said it would monitor cyberbullying against national players, who had become targets of online hate following their performances in Europe.

Players affected by online threats last year included Malaysia’s top-ranked pair, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, the mixed doubles duo Jimmy Wong and Lai Pei Jing, and Goh V Shem, who now partners South Korea’s Choi Sol-gyu.

The nature and severity of such threats have raised broader concerns about illegal gambling’s influence on badminton, as sports betting remains popular in the region, and frustrated bettors are known to target underperforming players.

Separately, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) suspended former Malaysian player Liew Daren for 12 months in December 2024 for betting violations, including placing bets on the Tokyo 2020 Olympics badminton event, highlighting the sport’s ongoing struggle with gambling-related issues.

However, authorities have not confirmed any direct connection between the recent threats against Ong and Teo and gambling activities.

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