Zulfadli wants to prove a point after Thomas Cup snub
PETALING JAYA: World junior champion Zulfadli Zulkifli admitted that he is a little disappointed over not being selected for last week’s Thomas Cup qualifying tournament and wants to use the Selangor Open which begins today to prove his worth.
The 19-year-old Zulfadli created history when he became the first Malaysian to win the Asian and World junior titles.
But the rising star, who trains under his father Zulkifli Sidek and is attached to KLRC, was largely overlooked by the BA of Malaysia (BAM) for the Thomas Cup qualifiers in Macau.
Malaysia, despite fielding a weak singles lineup, still qualified for the Thomas Cup Finals by virtue of finishing fourth.
But the BAM’S choices of Liew Daren and Mohd Arif Abdul Latif failed to win a match and Zulfadli believes that he has a point to prove.
“I am disappointed over not being selected for the squad but its in the past now. From the start I knew I didn’t stand a chance of making the squad,” said Zulfadli.
“The BAM have their own selection criteria and I don’t want to dwell on it too much. However, the Selangor Open, which is my first tournament of the year, will be the perfect stage for me to prove myself.
“The year has started a little slow because I’ve been training a lot harder now but it is now my chance to step from the junior to senior level.
“I’m not thinking too far ahead because I’ll probably face Daren in the quarter-finals but I just want give my best for all to see,” said Zulfadli.
The talented City lad is seeded eighth and is given a first round bye.
He will face Kedah’s Ng Sun Ly in the second round and a win should pit him against BAM’S Lim Fang Yang.
If he wins, he faces take top seed Daren in the last eight.
World No. 1 Lee Chong Wei will not be participating in the singles event and in his absence, the likes of Daren, Arif, Chong Wei Feng, Chan Kwong Beng and Misbun Ramdan Misbun have a good chance to step up.
Chong Wei is only taking part in the mixed doubles event with Vivian Hoo.