Malaysia's Badminton Coach Gives Jamaican Opponent Shuttler His Shoes & Wins Hearts
Hendrawan quickly gave his shoes to Jamaica's singles player because he did not want him to discontinue the match due to his damaged shoes.
By Ivyna Ong — 01 Aug 2022, 03:03 PM
Malaysia's singles badminton coach Hendrawan won hearts during the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, UK with his kind gesture
The sweet act occurred during a group match between national singles player Ng Tze Young and Jamaica's Samuel Ricketts at a mixed team event on Friday, 29 July, which took place at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC).
According to Berita Harian, the sole of Ricketts' shoes came off during the second round of the match, which caused the game to come to a stop for a moment.
His coach tried to help him by offering his own shoes and another teammate's, but both did not fit.
Ng also offered his shoes when he saw Ricketts struggling to fit into the replacement shoes, but was politely rejected due to the size differences
New Straits Times reported Hendrawan then quickly rushed over and took off his own shoes, before giving them to Ricketts so he could continue the match.
Hendrawan gave Ricketts his shoes because he did not want to see the Jamaican player discontinue the game due to the damaged shoes, reported Berita Harian.
Ricketts was grateful for Hendrawan's shoes and the help that was offered.
Malaysia went on to win the match against Jamaica, 21-12, 21-16
Ricketts continued wearing the shoes in a doubles game with his partner, Joel Angus. However, they lost in that match, 21-7, 21-11.
Despite Malaysia winning 5-0 against Jamaica, Hendrawan's sportsmanship built a good relationship between the two teams.
