2013 YOUNG APOLOGIST SG BULOH JUNIOR BADMINTON CHAMPIONSHIP

L to R : Tan Wei Tze (Jia Quan replacement) , Tan Jae Yang, Ryan & Aaron

When the draw was published in www.malaysiabadmintontournament.com, I couldn’t help myself giving a cheeky yelp on the good fortune as the boys have avoided all the top players in this tournament.

In U10, I saw a clear path to the semi-finals for Aaron being drawn to the same group with the girls.  Only Ting Wen Xuan stood in his way in the second round. If he could get pass Ting (runner-up of 2013 KLBA U9 Junior Closed Tournament), Aaron would cruise all the way to the semi-finals meeting a high profile Fazirq Razif, the son of the doubles ace Razif Sidek. Unexpectedly, his run was instead halted by a certain Wong Vin Sean in the 4^th round, the same player whom Aaron had beaten before in the USJ23 Tournament. As we saw it, both were of the same calibre but Aaron was clearly disturbed by some injury picked up during his doubles game earlier. It was truly a let off on this one.

Similarly in U12, Ryan was drawn in the quadrant of unknown players. As the known state players were group in other quadrants, Ryan’s path was lit up for him until he crosses over in the semi-finals with a state player, either KLBA No.1 Chua Yue Chern or PutraJaya No.1 Ooi Zhin Yang. However our optimism was short lived as his run was also halted by an unfamiliar Chan Jun Han in the 4^th round.

In the U12 doubles, both brothers were bundled together at the eleventh hour after learning Ryan’s regular partner Lie Jia Quan could not attend the tournament. Nevertheless, the brothers made it to the third round before going down to SRK(C) Puay Chai’s top pair of Lok Chong Ming & Danish Ravindran.

It was another dismal outing for the boys given that they couldn’t take advantage of a favourable draw or perhaps we were being too ambitious. Be that as it may, it was evident with the present skill level they have, they are only as good as 3^rd or 4^th round players. They lack competitive mind set and game astuteness to match the players at the next level – quarter final and beyond. It becomes necessary now to equip the boys with higher level skill set and game resilience which they require badly for their circuit preparation next year.  

Boys Singles Under 10

1^st Round             :  Aaron vs Walkover

2^nd Round            :  Aaron vs Ting Wen Xuan           30 – 25

3^rd Round             : Aaron vs Keegan Khoo               30 –  3

4^th Round             : Aaron vs Wong Vin Sean            18 – 30

Boys Singles Under 12

1^st Round             : Ryan vs Bye     

2^nd Round            :  Ryan vs Visnuvaaman                 30 – 11

3^rd Round             : Ryan vs Nazim Naquiddin            30 – 11

4^th Round             : Ryan vs Chan Jun Han                  19 - 30

Boys Doubles Under 12

1^st Round             :  Ryan/Aaron vs Bye

2^nd Round            :  Ryan/Aaron vs Kok Choon Han/Liew Jun Y        30 – 14

3^rd Round             :  Ryan/Aaron vs Lok Chong Ming/Danesh R        21 - 30