Aaron urges BWF to change tournament medical rules and use VAR

PETALING JAYA: Men's doubles shuttler Aaron Chia hopes the Badminton World Federation (BWF) will introduce video assistant referee (VAR) technology and change the medical rules for tournaments.

His suggestions come in the wake of the world governing body's proposed move to significantly increase prize money and extend the duration of tournaments.

While the 28-year-old welcomed the changes, he also wants to see more reforms in the sport.

"It's a good move to increase the prize money and it's better for players to have more rest and recovery between matches (if the tournaments are extended)," he said after a training session with partner Soh Wooi Yik at Akademi Badminton Malaysia in Bukit Kiara on Tuesday (June 17).

"BWF could also consider including VAR, like in football, to check if the shuttle touched a player before going out, and so on.

"It's also good to assist the service judge when it comes to deciding on service faults," he said.

Aaron went on to stress the importance of BWF changing the controversial ruling, which does not allow players to get medical attention during games.

Under the current ruling, introduced in November, players can only get attention during the intervals.

"Most important is the medical side. BWF need to be aware that while some players might be calling for medical attention to delay the game, most players need it when they request help and don't want to waste time by doing this.

"Sometimes, we really need a cold spray or plaster. We have seen our opponents twist their ankle before, but the referee came in and thought they were delaying," Aaron said.

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