Azizi tops junior stage
Selangor kegler shows why he’s a future star
PETALING JAYA: Selangor’s Muhd Azizi Naim is showing he has the potential to be a future bowling star.
The 20-year-old continued to make his presence felt on the international bowling stage by winning the boys’ Open title for Malaysia at the Milo Storm U22 International Junior All-Stars bowling championships.
Azizi edged national youth team member Nevern Netaneel 225-222 in an intense title match to bag his career’s biggest paycheque of RM25,000 at the Sunway Mega Lanes yesterday.
Malaysia last won the boys’ Open title through Timmy Tan in 2016.
Azizi was in his element in the earlier 10-game roll-off by shooting a 2,249-pin total to claim the top seed while Australian Callum Borck was second on 2,191.
Nevern and recently crowned men’s doubles world champion Tun Hakim Tun Hasnul Azam made it three Malaysians in the top four standings.
Nevern earned the title shot when he amassed 222 pins to better Tun Hakim (216) and Borck (192) in the one-game elimination contest.
This was not the first time Azizi has made the country proud in an international tournament.
Azizi captured the boys’ Open title at the Jaya Ancol Singles Classic in Jakarta in May. He also gave his senior rivals a run for their money in the same tournament by coming in fourth in the men’s Open category that was won by Thailand’s ace Yannaphon Larpapharat.
“I’m very satisfied with my achievements this year. I won not only one, but two international titles – this has to be the best-ever season in my career so far,” said Azizi, the 2015 national youth champion.
“I owe this success to my ‘sifu’ Kang Bo Long (former national bowler). I’ve trained under him for almost four years now.
“He not only trains me, but this time, he also sponsored my participation in this tournament under his pro shop banner.
“He has raised the bar for me next year. He wants me to emulate him in winning the Masters (open category event). He won it in 2016.”
There was no joy for Malaysia in the girls’ Open when Nur Hazirah Ramli went down fighting 211-255 to Singapore’s Charmaine Chang. It’s the first time Malaysia failed to make a clean sweep of both the boys’ and girls’ titles since 2012.
Still, it’s a commendable display by Sarawak’s rising star who had earlier bagged the Under-15 title on Wednesday.
“I couldn’t have asked for more. A runner-up finish is always good considering I’m competing against older opponents,” said the sweetfaced Hazirah, a double gold medallist at the Perak Malaysia Games in September.