PETALING JAYA, June 4 — Former player Ong Beng Hee has vowed to answer his critics who are skeptical of his appointment as coach with Squash Racquets Association Malaysia (SRAM).

“Many people have been questioning my ability to coach and asking me about my certificates and qualifications. Everyone seems obsessed about them but what I’ve gained on court is 20 years of experience,” said Ong, who is three weeks into his role with SRAM.

“I’ll sit for my Level 1 and 2 certificates after the SEA Games and it could be completed within one to two months. Most importantly, I want to prove I can coach after playing for so long,” added the 35-year-old.

As a player, Ong had a decorated 20-year career highlighted by gold medal successes at the 2002 and 2006 Asian Games.

One of his first assignments being on the other side of court was to oversee the Podium Programme set to be launched after the SEA Games.

“Nicol (David) and (Low) Wee Wern, who will be in the programme, already have their own coaches. My role would be to keep in touch with them and be updated with their progress while helping out the other players. The programme is essentially about producing results and I want to be a big part of this,” said Ong, who has high hopes for the SEA Games squad.

“I hope they’ll return with four gold medals. We’ll be in trouble if we don’t deliver as our closest rival Singapore is represented by mostly part-time players.

“Even though we have sent our second team, they will essentially be our players for the future. This is the perfect time for them to prove their worth.”