SINGAPORE — Already depleted by a spate of player retirements, the Singapore national badminton team have been dealt yet another blow. Doubles specialist Chayut Triyachart has ­decided to hang up his racket after eight years with the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA).

The 26-year-old had suffered a partial tear in his Achilles tendon in July, and made the decision to quit professional badminton after struggling to recover from his injury.

According to the SBA, Chayut — who won the mixed doubles bronze medal with Yao Lei at the 2010 Commonwealth Games — was also ­unable to commit to the full-time training schedule required for its national shuttlers.

The news will come as a blow to the national squad, who have lost a number of senior players to retirement in recent years, including men’s team members Ashton Chen, Terry Yeo and 2014 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist (mixed team) Huang Chao.

The women’s team were not spared either, with 2010 Singapore Open champion Yao Lei (women’s doubles), former world No 16 Gu Juan and 2011 SEA Games gold medallist (women’s singles) Fu Mingtian also throwing in the towel. The players cited a variety of reasons for quitting the sport, including academic studies, injuries and a lack of motivation.

The SBA’s coaching set-up has also seen numerous changes, with Chua Yong Joo appointed its new chief coach in July — the fourth senior coaching staff member hired in the past five years.

Chayut, who was born in Udon Thani, Thailand, joined the SBA full-time in April 2007 before leaving in January 2013 to pursue his business interests. Lured by his love of the sport, he rejoined the SBA 10 months later. The 2014 season proved to be a rewarding one for the shuttler and his men’s doubles partner, Danny Bawa Chrisnanta, with the Singaporean pair winning the Malaysian Grand Prix Gold and Macau Open, before following it up with two bronze medals in the men’s doubles and men’s team at the 2015 SEA Games.

Known for his aggression and power smashes on court, Chayut’s retirement will leave the 11-strong men’s squad with just three senior players — Derek Wong, Danny, and Hendra Wijaya.

While the loss of their doubles specialist will be a blow to the team’s hopes of qualifying players for next year’s Olympics, SBA director of team administration Chew Keet Hou said yesterday: “SBA has been placing much emphasis on grooming younger players since the establishment of the National Intermediate Squad (NIS) in 2011.”

Pointing to the recent achievements of its younger players — Loh Kean Yew’s men’s singles bronze at the SEA Games, Yeo Jiamin’s two golds at the Asia Junior Under-17 championships — Chew said: “We have been seeing some achievements from these young players from NIS recently. Our Olympic Games’ preparation plan is still ­intact. We are fighting for qualification in three main events — men’s singles, women’s singles and mixed doubles. Danny is currently focusing on his mixed doubles pairing with Vanessa Neo in a bid to qualify.”

Despite the setback, former ­national shuttler Chen is confident that Singapore badminton will be able to bounce back.

“Chayut’s retirement is a loss for the team as he is one of the senior players, and you lose a chance at the Olympics, which is only eight or nine months away, so it is a pity. There are very few senior players left but it’s up to the younger generation to catch up. I hope they can close the gap.”