Sukma stunners
Selangor shuttler Aidil stuns top seed Jun Hao
Selangor shuttler Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin turned giant-killer in style by packing off top seed and Asian junior champion Leong Jun Hao of Federal Territories 18-21, 21-19, 21-19 in the boys’ singles quarter-finals at the Perak Sukma. The 18-yearold then went on to knock out third seed Yeoh Seng Zoe of Penang 21-12, 22-20 to reach the final. In swimming, Johor’s Tia’a Faang Der set the pool alight with a new 400m individual medley national record of 4:30.48, clipping 0.37 seconds off the previous mark of 4:30.85.
FORGET Jack the giant t slayer – just look at Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin (pic).
The Selangor shuttle er was pure class as he turned ed giant-killer by packing off top seed and Asian junior champion Leong Jun Hao of Federal Territories 18-21, 21-19, 21-19 in the boys’ singles quarter-finals at the Perak Badminton Arena yesterday.
And the 18-year-old continued his gallant run by knocking out third seed Yeoh Seng Zoe of Penang 21-12, 22-20 in another energy-sapping match in the semi-finals.
Today, he will take on second seed Tan Jia Wei of Penang in the final.
Jun Hao and Jia Wei are the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) players coached by Datuk Misbun Sidek while Seng Zoe is a former national trainee.
Aidil, who trains under former BAM coach Rashid Sidek at the Sports Affairs Academy, was thrilled to beat world No. 73 Jun Hao and Seng Zoe, who played a role to help Penang win the team gold last week.
Jun Hao had earlier beaten Aidil’s teammate Shahzan Shah Misfahul 21-16, 21-16 in the second round.
“I never thought I could beat Jun Hao. I was really nervous in the first game and my body was stiff, so I was afraid to take risks and couldn’t really play my game,” said Aidil.
“But I stepped up in the second and played point-for-point. I grew more confident and was more free to play my style, and by the third game, I was brimming with confidence and everything came together.
“Jun Hao’s netshot is fast and his smashes are good but I studied his game well.
“I train together with Seng Zoe, so I know his game well but I never expected to reach the final – this is unbelievable.
And Aidil gave credit to his legendary coach Rashid, Misun’s younger brother.
“He has guided me to become the player that I am today. Rashid is experienced and his insights are invaluable. He has taught me many skills and my game has improved.”
Aidil added that he had also picked up good traits by training alongside former national players Liew Daren, the bronze medal winner at the World Championships, Chong Wei Feng and South Korean Lee Hyun-il.
All of them train at the Sports Affairs Academy under Rashid.
“They play much faster than me – their movements, their shots and everything else. Rashid always pushes me to keep up with them. He said it would be hard for me to win if I can’t even match their speed.”
Now, Aidil’s mind is all focused on the final against Jia Wei, who showed his quality by easily defeating Terengganu’s Faiz Rozain 21-14, 21-15 in the other semi-final.
“I’ve never played him before, so I really have to stay focused and play patiently against him.”