KUALA LUMPUR – Selangor shuttler Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin hopes to follow in national team compatriot Ng Tze Yong’s footsteps in becoming one of the best in the men’s singles players for the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM)
Aidil, currently ranked 94 in the world, said he realised he had been losing out to Tze Yong, ranked 36th, even though they were in the same batch when joining BAM.
“I admired Tze Yong’s hard work. After our practice session (at the badminton academy), he will always put in the extra effort to train on his own.
“He would either be on the court or at the gym.
“I have been doing those things too, but I probably need to do more.
“I wished one day I could catch up to him (in ranking),” he said.
Aidil joined BAM in December 2018 after proving his capability of clinching a silver medal in the men’s singles event at the 19th Malaysia Games (Sukma) for his home state, Selangor.
At this year’s edition, he aims to up his game to clinch a gold medal.
However, he felt uncertain about the target as he will be facing his Tze Yong in the semifinals tomorrow.
“I targeted for gold this time around, but since I will be meeting Tze Yong tomorrow, the chance of winning gold might be slimmer than I thought.
“We have been training together, so we know each other’s gameplay.
“It is going to be quite difficult to predict what will happen,” he said when meeting after his quarterfinal match at Axiata Arena Indoor Stadium, Bukit Jalil.
Aidil will clash against Tze Yong in the semifinals after downing BAM compatriot and Melaka’s Ong Ken Yon, 21-19, 21-15 in 35 minutes.
Tze Yong, who represented Johor, defeated Pahang’s Chia Jeng Hon in the quarterfinals, 21-13, 21-12 in 32 minutes. – The Vibes, September 22, 2022
