KUCHING: Lawn bowler Zhariq Sollehuddin Zuraidy’s call-up to the national squad is proof of Sarawak’s ability to produce good players.Sarawak Lawn Bowls Association (Salba) president Awang Mahyan Awang Mohamad said the move would also inspire other state bowlers to improve their performance.
According to him, Zhariq is a young but experienced bowler who helped Sarawak to a gold medal in the 2008 Sukma in Terengganu.
“We are proud Zhariq has been selected to represent Malaysia in an international championship next month. I believe this will motivate the other state players to do well.”
Mahyan said Sarawak had many young talents who could be picked to play at a higher level.
He felt that Zhariq’s call-up was a right move by Malaysian Lawn Bowls Association (Malba) to upgrade young Sarawakian lawn bowlers.
“I’m confident Zhariq can hold his own in the coming international event,” he said.
Mahyan is confident lawn bowlers from the state will continue to improve if given the chance to compete at a higher level.
He said Sarawak had done much to develop the players and this had strengthened their standings at state and national levels.
“We have players who can play in any category. I have faith in their ability to produce their best in every competition. With systematic training and match exposure, our players can go very far.”
On preparations for Sukma XIII in Melaka from May 29 to June 8, Mahyan said the state squad were now doing intensive training, and also sent for various national tournaments as part of their build-up.
Among the tournaments lined up for them are the Malaysian Indoor Singles and Pairs Championship in Selangor from Jan 13-16, the National Singles Championship in Kuala Lumpur from March 27-30 and the National Youth U-21 Singles and Pairs Championship in Kedah from April 1-4.
The team will also play in an invitational in Sandakan, Sabah from March 1-3 to mark the soft opening of a new green there.