Now, they are set to lose their biggest star.

Couldn't cope with the pressure

The national number one singles player Lee Zii Jia has tendered his resignation last week, The Star reported.

The matter was confirmed by BAM president Tan Sri Norza Zakaria.

According to Norza, the 23-year-old rising star tendered his resignation letter on 11 January, and since then, the BAM has had several meetings with him to convince him to stay.

However, the attempts have been futile.

“We see Zii Jia as an asset and we tried to persuade him (to stay) because we have groomed him since he was 13.

“Now that he has reached this stage, winning the All-England, we certainly didn’t want to lose him because he has a bright future.

“We want to take him to greater heights and be successful as Lee Chong Wei," Norza was quoted as saying.

He further revealed that Lee has told BAM that he can't cope with the pressure of being the next Lee Chong Wei.

Norza added that the BAM have appointed deputy president Datuk Seri Dr Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos to look into the matter, and a press conference will be held on Friday (21 January) to address the issue.

Even though Lee has tendered his resignation letter, the report stated that BAM has yet to accept it.

There's also a clause in his contract that states that shuttlers who quit the national team "prematurely" will face sanction, including being banned from competing in tournaments.

What's next for Lee?

While Lee's future currently hangs in the balance, he could still resume his badminton career and continue to bring glory to Malaysia.

His most likely next move is to go professional, like some of his fellow national badminton players who quit BAM in the past did.

In fact, national mixed doubles shuttler Goh Liu Ying posted a cryptic message on her Instagram Stories right after news of Lee's resignation made headlines:

"Will the professional team add another member?," she wrote.

Well, we guess we'll just have to wait and see.