PETALING JAYA: A coach can usually tell when a player is struggling with mental health but just recognising it is not enough.

Action must follow, says national men’s doubles coach Herry Iman Pierngadi.

The 63-year-old Herry, who brings over three decades of experience in player development, said that he has learned to identify subtle signs when an athlete is emotionally or psychologically affected during training.

“You can see it in their faces ... they look nervous. On court, their game plan becomes chaotic. That’s when you know something is wrong,” said Herry.

“When that happens, I’ll speak to the player privately to understand what’s bothering him.

“After assessing the situation, I’ll work with our team psychologist to provide the necessary support.”

Herry admitted that coaching this generation of players comes with new challenges – particularly due to the influence of social media.

“I believe what’s shared in the social media has a strong and sometimes, adverse effect on a player’s mental health,” added Herry, who is now preparing former world champions Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun and others for the back-to-back Japan Open (July 15-20) and China Open (July 22-27).

The topic of mental health had surfaced after professional men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia shared several cryptic images including a stitched-up figure holding a blood-stained needle on his Instagram on Friday.

It led to many of his fans questioning whether the 27-year-old Zii Jia, who has been forced to take a long break to recover from an ankle injury, could be facing personal or mental health problems.

The National Sports Council (NSC) director-general Jefri Ngadirin, however, said yesterday there was nothing to worry about.

In fact, Jefri said the council as well as Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh had contacted Team LZJ to ascertain why the player had put up those sketches.

“They (Team LZJ) informed that there is nothing to worry about Zii Jia. Maybe Zii Jia out of curiosity and so on, posted the pictures, or he is interested in that kind of art.

“However, we are always open to help if his team need help from NSC or the National Sports Institute (NSI),” said Jefri at the Athletes’ Day programme held at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium yesterday as reported by Bernama.

While rejecting that the player was suffering from depression, Jeffri added: “His team and friends also do not see any indication that he has any mental or personal problems.

“In today’s generation, they might like that kind of art, right? So, let him express himself,” he said.

World No. 27 Zii Jia is expected to play at Japan Open next.