Ratchanok Intanon hopes to help Thailand reach at least the semi-finals despite having a tough assignment in the group stage of the Uber Cup, which begins on Sunday.
World No.8 Ratchanok Intanon.
The world No.8, who contracted Covid-19 in March, insisted that she is now fully fit to lead the team which face Egypt, Malaysia and Denmark in Group C.
They will take on Egypt in the opening tie on Sunday at Muang Thong Thani's Impact Arena in Nonthaburi.
"Beating Egypt in the opening tie is very important because our group, which also has Malaysia and Denmark, is quite tough," said Ratchanok.
"They both have very strong teams so we have to win our opener. However, we will not underestimate Egyptian players who, I am sure, have been preparing well for the tournament."
She added: "We hope to reach the semi-finals and then we will see if we can get to the final again."
The Thai women stunned China in the semi-finals before losing to Japan in the final in 2018 when the tournament was held at the same venue.
Meanwhile, Kantaphon Wangcharoen, who is part of Thailand's Thomas Cup team, admitted Group A is difficult but the team will try to make it to the quarter-finals. "We are in a very tough group but our goal is to reach the quarter-finals," said the world No.22. "All Thai players will do their best and hopefully the fans will come and give us support."
Thailand's Thomas Cup team are in Group A along with defending champions Indonesia, South Korea and Singapore.
Patama Leeswadtrakul, president of the Badminton Association of Thailand, has vowed to give both teams two million baht for winning the title, one million baht for finishing second, 500,000 baht for claiming third place and 250,000 baht for reaching the quarter-finals.
Tickets for the May 8-15 tournament are now available at Thai Ticket Major outlets.
New Zealand pull out
New Zealand have withdrawn from the Thomas Cup due to a significant number of their squad members being unable to participate.
No other Oceania member association was able to fulfil the continental quota place. Hong Kong and Spain were next in line based on world rankings, but they too declined.
The USA will take their place in Group D alongside Japan, Malaysia, and England.