No buddy issue as Aina pips best friend Gillian to girls’ Open crown
PETALING JAYA: Nur Aina Kamalia Abdul Ayub turned the tables on her best friend and Sarawak teammate Gillian Lim to secure her biggest career win at the Malaysian Open bowling championships.
The 19-year-old Aina kept her composure to close out an intense two-horse race for the girls’ Open crown with a 21-pin victory over Gillian at the Sunway Mega Lanes yesterday.
Aina topped the eight-game contest with a 1,670 total followed by Gillian on 1,649 pinfalls.
Singapore’s Fion Liew finished a distant third with 1,555.
It was Aina’s third international title, having previously won the Under-18 title at last year’s Singapore Open and the girls’ graded competition at the Malaysian Open in 2015.
“I entered the tournament with a strong feeling of winning because I’ve trained hard and worked on my physical game,” said Aina, who pocketed RM5,000.
“I feel grateful and blessed as this, hopefully, will mark the start of a fruitful year ahead. This victory is going to whet my appetite for more titles.
“I’m looking at improving on my three golds and one silver haul (achieved two years ago) at the Inter-State. I also want to be the national youth champion for the first time.
“The sky is the limit if you dare to step out of your comfort zone.
“I would really like to thank my coaches and parents, who’re also here this week, for their guidance and support.”
In the boys’ competition, Bahrain’s Ahmed Alwahdi was the runaway winner as he posted a 1,743 total to win by 66 pins ahead of Merwin Tan of the Philippines.
Singapore’s Joyan Khoo came in third with 1,658.
It was a disappointing outing for Malaysia’s national youth bowlers – Wan Syahmi Razin, Syazirol Shamsuddin, Shafiy Zaim and Nevern Nataneel – as they failed to make an impression.
The tournament resumes for the next two days with the men’s and women’s Open finals.
Local bowling fans can expect a thrilling finale as Malaysia’s World Championship-winning trio of Rafiq Ismail, Adrian Ang and Tun Ameerul Hakim Tun Hasnul Azam take on some of the finest American PBA professionals in Dominic Barrett, Sean Rash, Andrew Anderson, Kyle Troup and Tom Daugherty.