Jakarta: Simon Santoso made a surprise decision on Thursday by resigning from the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI).
His resignation from PBSI was not something new; he quit PBSI in January 2014 before he was called back to the Indonesia national team in July 2014 after he enjoyed several huge successes such as winning the 2014 Singapore Super Series and the 2014 Malaysia Grand Prix Gold titles as an independent player.
Unfortunately, his second stint with PBSI only lasted for eight months, before he decided to leave the Indonesian national team again.
In the conversation below, Simon Santoso told reporter about the reasons why he resigned from PBSI.
Reporter: What’s behind your decision to quit PBSI this time?
Simon Santoso: No, nothing. I just felt that I had to take a break from PBSI in order to have a peace of mind. Hopefully, I can perform better to resurrect my career after leaving the national team.
Reporter: Are you disappointed with your performance after rejoined the national at middle of last year?
Simon Santoso: I had been troubled by injuries; I was not 100% since returned to PBSI. I was not able to perform the way I really wanted to.
Reporter: Do you ever regret about your decision to return to the national team?
Simon Santoso: No. The decision has been made and I do not regret making that decision. The most important thing for me right now is keep moving forward.
Reporter: You managed to show some signs of resurgence in the Djarum Super League, how come?
Simon Santoso: At that time I was still about 70% of my best games. Therefore, today I am still in the stage of restoring my performance.
Reporter: What’s your goal after you leave the national team?
Simon Santoso: As I said, I do not look too far ahead. I will go back and train very hard at my club. Currently, my main goal is to restore my performance to 100%, and after that, I am confident positive results will follow.
Reporter: What’s your target at this year’s World Championships which will take place in Jakarta?
Simon Santoso: There are a lot of tournaments before the start of the World Championships. I would take it one game at a time. For now, I am concentrating on those tournaments that fast approaching.
Reporter: If the Indonesian team still needs you, would you be willing to contribute your service?
Simon Santoso: Yes, I am ready to join the national team if my service is needed by PBSI.
Reporter: Does it include the Sudirman Cup which will take place about two months from now?
Simon Santoso: Yes. If PBSI feel my condition is good enough to represent Indonesia, I certainly would fulfill that call.
According to other sources, another reason why Simon Santoso chose to leave the national team was because PBSI have decided to drop him from the 2015 Malaysia Open following his weak performance at several tournaments earlier this year.
