Wonder Women
Shalin hits 300 en route to reaching match play stage in the US
This may be the Ramadan to remember for national diver Nur Dhabitah Sabri and bowler Shalin Zulkifli. On Sunday, Dhabitah bagged the bronze in the women’s 3m springboard final at the Diving World Series in London, while Shalin scored her career’s eighth perfect game en route to the last 16 of the match play stage in the ongoing US Bowling Congress Queens Championship in Kansas. To top it off, Tan Ing Yueh battled the odds to win bronze in the vault event at the FIG World Challenge Cup in Chongqing, China.
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s Shalin Zulkifli (pic) can lay claim to having made her mark in almost every bowling tournament in the world in her 25-year career.
But the evergreen 41-year-old still has one unfinished business – to roll down a win on the US PWBA (Professional Women’s Bowling Association) Tour.
So, it was easy to understand why Shalin was willing to fund her own competition stint in the United States with teammates Sin Li Jane, Siti Safiyah Amirah Abdul Rahman and Esther Cheah.
And the fact that she had to spend the first three weeks of the fasting month (Ramadan) away from her family speaks volume of what Shalin is willing to sacrifice in order to achieve her goal.
And it has been worth her while as Shalin is going great guns in the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Queens Championships in Kansas.
On Sunday, Shalin fired her career’s eighth perfect game en route to the last 16 of the match play stage.
She first beat Colombia’s Juliana Franco 724-576 in the three-game total-pinfall contest, before following it up with another convincing 649-590 triumph over American Natalie Cortese to set up an all-Malaysian clash with Li Jane.
Li Jane, who finished fifth in the 2016 USBC Queens, was also in redhot form as she defeated Colombia’s Anggie Ramirez 783-513 and Erin McCarthy 781-650.
Esther was the other Malaysian to stay on course to win the prestigious tournament, considered as one of the two Majors besides the US Women’s Open. She upstaged Rebecca Whiting of Australia and then downed American Kristin Nieter 618-543.
But it was Shalin who stole the limelight with her first perfect game (in the match against Franco) in five years.
“It’s been a while since I last struck a 300 at the DHC Cup in Japan in 2013,” said Shalin. “It’s never easy to score a perfect game. I had only a few throughout my career and I cherish each of them.”
Shalin will be hoping to ride on the fine momentum in her bid to realise her life-long ambition of becoming a champion on the professional Tour.
She came closest in the US Open in 2008 when she finished third.
“It has always been my dream to become a Tour winner, ever since I became the first Malaysian to earn an exemption status for the PWBA (then known as PBA’s Women’s Tour),” said Shalin.
“I’m thankful that I’m able to compete this year even though we have to fork out our own money.
“I’m very blessed to have an ever-supportive husband (Azidi Ameran, also former national bowler) who gave me his blessings to continue pursuing my goal.”
Siti Safiyah Amirah Abdul Rahman failed to make top-64 cut after she finished 92nd out of 192 competitors on Saturday.
The Malaysian quartet’s earlier stop was at the Lincoln Open, where Li Jane was the best performer with a 14th-placed finish.