PETALING JAYA: National bowler Zulmazran Zulkifli has been in awesome form since the beginning of the year.
But Malaysia need more than just one man blazing the lanes in order to make a strong impact in the World Championships for men in Thailand from Aug 21-31.
And with only three months left before the major tournament, chief coach Holloway Cheah is bent on strengthening the depth of the team.
Triumphant: The Malaysian team led by World Ranking Masters women’s champion Wendy Chai (fourth left) and men’s runner-up Zulmazran Zulkifli (third left) posing at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport yesterday. – Bernama
In Jakarta on Sunday, Zulmazran became the first Malaysian man to reach the final of the World Ranking Masters. He went down to 1-2 (191-248, 179-171, 185-212) to Jari Ratia of Finland.
It would have been double joy for Malaysia if Zulmazran had beaten the Finn. Earlier, seasoned campaigner Wendy Chai made history as the first Malaysian winner of the World Ranking Masters.
Holloway said that Zulmazran had showed more confidence in his game since making the top 16 in the Denny’s World Championships in Indianapolis in February. He went on to win the Malaysian Open in March.
“He has been on a roll and is certainly the bowler to watch for this year. I only wish that I had two or three Zulmazrans in the men’s team,” said Holloway, who returned home with the bowlers from Jakarta yesterday.
On a roll: Zulmazran is Malaysia’s best male bowler at the moment.
Besides Zulmazran, the others in the elite men’s team are Alex Liew, Daniel Lim, Aaron Kong, Adrian Ang and Mohd Noer Said.
Alex and Daniel also competed in the World Ranking Masters but both failed to make the top eight knockout stage, finishing in 16th and 18th spots respectively after the 24-game qualification round.
“Alex and Daniel are still struggling in their game. I will be helping them to fine tune their game – especially on the technical aspects,” said Holloway.
He added that he would expect stronger performances from the men in their next major tournament, the Asian Championships in Hong Kong from July 4-13.
On Wendy’s superb performances on her comeback trail, Holloway said that Malaysia had not seen the best of her yet.
“I was worried about Wendy, especially after the Malaysian Open. She had lost a lot of weight and did not perform up to my expectations. I am glad that she showed what she is made of in Jakarta,” said Holloway.
“But Wendy can still do better than this. I have advised her to put on a few more kilos and work on having more strength in her game.
“With her recent performances, I have confirmed her name for the Asian championships together with Shalin (Zulkifli), Esther (Cheah) and Zandra (Aziela Ibrahim Hakimi). The others have to prove themselves in the Singapore and Indonesian Opens next month.”
Article Source:
http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2008/5/7/sports/21171667&sec=sports
