Nicholas surprised to be in Team Asia despite dip in form

PETALING JAYA: National No. 2 Nicholas Fung (pic) could hardly believe his luck after being named by captain Arjun Atwal as one of the wildcards for Team Asia for the EurAsia Cup, presented by DRBHicom, against Team Europe in January.

The 27-year-old will be making his third straight appearance at the Glenmarie Golf and Country Club from Jan 12-14, having featured in Thongchai Jaidee’s side in 2014 and Jeev Milkha Singh’s side in 2016.

“I was aiming to qualify on merit (by finishing as the top four Asian in the Asian Tour Order of Merit), but I didn’t do well in the last few tournaments,” admitted Nicholas, who’s in Xiamen, China, to compete in the Asian Golf Championship, which starts tomorrow.

“I couldn’t believe my luck when I was informed that I got in last week. My recent form had been poor, so I didn’t think I would get selected.”

But Nicholas made Arjun sit up and take notice by winning his maiden Asian Tour title – the Queen’s Cup in Thailand – in June, proving that he can be relied on for match play competitions.

In his last outing, he teamed up with compatriot Danny Chia to earn a point in Asia’s 18½-5½ loss to Europe.

The pair clinched half a point each in Friday’s fourballs and Saturday’s foursomes against Frenchman Victor Dubuisson and Denmark’s Soren Kjeldsen on both occasions.

In 2014, Nicholas did not score a point in the team’s 10-10 draw. But he was praised for his gutsy display – particularly in his singles tie against European captain Miguel Angel Jimenez that lasted until the final hole before the Spaniard won 1-up.

“I’m very happy to be part of Team Asia again. The only way to thank Arjun is to repay him by winning as many points for the team,” said Nicholas.

“I hope to play a bigger part this time.”