Tuesday, 16 October 2012
PTBS to promote tennis aggresively
KUCHING: The Sarawak Bumiputera Tennis Association (PTBS) have announced that they will be promoting tennis aggressively to the Bumiputera community after the success of Sarawak-born national players Mohd Assri Merzuki and Muhammad Aiman Hamdan.
The association is planning to organise more tournaments to unearth new talents and is set to launch their website this Oct 21 to further boost tennis development in the state.
“PTBS have so far produced a number of renowned players including Mohd Assri Merzuki. After seeing the success of Mohd Assri, we were motivated to organise more tournaments and create a website to promote our association and development of tennis in the state. We want to promote tennis more among the Bumiputera community,” informed PTBS official Ismail Abdullah.
Current Kuching age-group champion Muhammad Aiman Hamdan is also one of the products of PTBS youth development programme.
He participated against a few of the world’s best U-14 players at the ITF Asian U-14 tournament which was held here recently.
“He is one the best young players in the state and we are glad that he has decided to compete in the tournament. Apart from Mohd Assri Merzuki who is one of the country’s finest, Muhammad Aiman is also a product of our youth programme,” said Ismail.
After the recent success of the Inter-community Tennis Tournament last month, PTBS will be organising a two-day tennis tournament from Oct 20 to 21.
“The tournament will be called the ‘YB Datuk Fadillah Yusof Cup’ and is dedicated to the current Petra Jaya Member of Parliament.
“The tournament features some of the state’s finest Bumiputera tennis players. This includes Muhammad Aiman. It is open to all those who are of Sarawak Bumiputera community background,” informed Ismail.
The tournament, which will be held at the PTBS grounds/headquarters at Petra Jaya, is divided into two categories – the U-18 and above 18-years-old categories. It will be contested in a team event format.
In another development, Ismail added that the association is in the process to get more female Bumiputera players to participate in their competitions.
“We do realise there is a lack of participation from female Bumiputeras in tennis. Therefore, we are committed to unearth more female tennis players and we hope to do so in this tournament.
“All female players will be playing in the mixed-doubles in their respective age categories in the tournament,” he said.
Apart from the tournament itself, PTBS will hold a dinner cum prize-giving ceremony on the evening of the last day of the tournament (Oct 21).
“It will be called ‘Malam Mesra Bersama Warga PTBS’. Some of the association’s prominent members including Datuk Effendi Tahir and other community leaders are expected to attend the ceremony.
“The ceremony will also see the launch of the new PTBS website. PTBS would like to thank all of the sponsors of the event especially DiGi Telecommunications,” added Ismail.- www.theborneopost.com
Saturday, 6 October 2012
20th ITF Junior tennis c’ship (Grade 3) from Oct 30 to Nov 4
KUCHING: Four Sarawakians are among the 15 local juniors competing in the 20th Sarawak Chief Minister’s Cup (II) ITF junior tennis championship (Grade 3) to be held at Sarawak Lawn Tennis Association (SLTA) tennis centre from Oct 30 to Nov 4.
Aslina Chua is the only Malaysian playing in the main draw of the girls’ singles while Choo Lyn Yuen, Low Zhe Han and Chang Tun Sien are playing in the qualifier that starts on Oct 29.
Choo will also be joined by compatriots Ti Jia Wei, Nurin Nabilah Roslan and Alyssa Boey in the qualifier.
Looking to qualify for the boys’ singles main draw are Tan Zu Zinyang and Benjamin Lim on the alternates list are Low Kar Win and Joshua Jordan.
The two Malaysians in the boys’ main draw are Ahmed Deedat Abdul Razak (ITF No. 609) and Colin Wong Wei Ming (ITF No. 642).
Turkey’s Cem Ilkel is the top ranked player at number 94 while his counterpart Ipek Soylu is the highest ranked girl at number 69.
“Although this is only a Grade 3 competition, it is very competitive judging from the rankings of the players, with the cut off for the boys main draw at ITF No. 642 and girls main draw at ITF No. 661,” the organising committee chairman, Dato Patrick Liew said in a press conference yesterday.
Liew who is also SLTA president, said this is the second leg of the Chief Minister’s Cup ITF Junior Tennis Championship as the first leg, a Grade 1 event, was held in March this year.
“As in the past, the championship has again attracted very good response, with 93 boys and 68 girls from 29 countries have confirmed taking part,” he said on the exciting event which has made Sarawak well known globally as a preferred destination for international junior tennis events.
He is expecting some withdrawals as players might not come for the qualifying matches as they are too lowly ranked or do not have any rankings at all.
“In this aspect, we will be using the wildcards where we as the organiser can allocate at least three to Malaysians,” said Liew.
He said apart from organising international events, SLTA is also organising local competitions such as the Sarawak Closed and Inter-Division, Kuching Age Group to unearth more young talents to groom them for future championships.
“We are also encouraging our affiliates to organise more local tournaments to give our players more opportunity to compete,” he added.
He said by getting Malaysians to play in the international competitions organised by SLTA, they would get more exposure and ready to play at a higher level of tennis.- www.theborneopost.com
Aslina Chua is the only Malaysian playing in the main draw of the girls’ singles while Choo Lyn Yuen, Low Zhe Han and Chang Tun Sien are playing in the qualifier that starts on Oct 29.
Choo will also be joined by compatriots Ti Jia Wei, Nurin Nabilah Roslan and Alyssa Boey in the qualifier.
Looking to qualify for the boys’ singles main draw are Tan Zu Zinyang and Benjamin Lim on the alternates list are Low Kar Win and Joshua Jordan.
The two Malaysians in the boys’ main draw are Ahmed Deedat Abdul Razak (ITF No. 609) and Colin Wong Wei Ming (ITF No. 642).
Turkey’s Cem Ilkel is the top ranked player at number 94 while his counterpart Ipek Soylu is the highest ranked girl at number 69.
“Although this is only a Grade 3 competition, it is very competitive judging from the rankings of the players, with the cut off for the boys main draw at ITF No. 642 and girls main draw at ITF No. 661,” the organising committee chairman, Dato Patrick Liew said in a press conference yesterday.
Liew who is also SLTA president, said this is the second leg of the Chief Minister’s Cup ITF Junior Tennis Championship as the first leg, a Grade 1 event, was held in March this year.
“As in the past, the championship has again attracted very good response, with 93 boys and 68 girls from 29 countries have confirmed taking part,” he said on the exciting event which has made Sarawak well known globally as a preferred destination for international junior tennis events.
He is expecting some withdrawals as players might not come for the qualifying matches as they are too lowly ranked or do not have any rankings at all.
“In this aspect, we will be using the wildcards where we as the organiser can allocate at least three to Malaysians,” said Liew.
He said apart from organising international events, SLTA is also organising local competitions such as the Sarawak Closed and Inter-Division, Kuching Age Group to unearth more young talents to groom them for future championships.
“We are also encouraging our affiliates to organise more local tournaments to give our players more opportunity to compete,” he added.
He said by getting Malaysians to play in the international competitions organised by SLTA, they would get more exposure and ready to play at a higher level of tennis.- www.theborneopost.com
Tennis championship a boost to tourism industry, says Dawos
KUCHING: Sports bodies in Sarawak have been urged to emulate Sarawak Lawn Tennis Association (SLTA) by organising international sporting events to boost sports tourism industry in the state.
Speaking to The Borneo Post, federal Deputy Minister of Tourism Datuk Dr James Dawos Mamit said that he had come to his understanding that SLTA since last year had organised seven international tennis championships which had attracted competitors from 35 countries.
“So you could figure out how much revenue these international events had generated for the state’s tourism industry. The incomes are from participants’ entrance fees, hotel-stay, and souvenirs and so on,” he added.
Dawos suggested that sports association could start to tap the potential and benefits of small scale sport events as tourist attraction in Sarawak and also said that sports’ tourists could be categorised into active sport tourist and passive sport tourists.
Quoting researcher’s findings Dawos revealed that the results indicated that tourists who visited the state are those motivated to seek active sport-oriented vacations and on the other hand, passive sport tourists are motivated by social factors and the need to escape from over stimulating situations.
“The fact that sport events in Malaysia attract tourists is well established and prominent examples include the Formula One Grand Prix, Commonwealth Games, South East Asian Games, and Thomas Cup Badminton Finals.
Sports event generates diverse and heterogeneous flows of travellers that may include fans, athletes, coaches, media, team personnel, parents and family members.
Despite the significance of sports event as a form of tourist attraction, it could also promote the natural and rural beauty of Sarawak to sports tourists who might be adventurers and explorers who prefer outdoor activities, or the seeker who might be attracted to the peaceful and tranquil setting,” added Dawos.
He also has the view that sports-body needs to work with local businesses, tour operators, local hotels and restaurants so that these businesses can give a percentage of sales commission from package tours directly to the sports associations who organise the tours.
“For example, if a tour operator books a hotel in the area as accommodation for a sports tour group, a 10% sales commission could be shared among the tour operator and sports-body. And while that sport events are not just for big cities and much benefit can also be realised through small amateur sporting events similar to hosting a mega sporting event. More importantly, the small scale sports events are also an effective means of securing economic benefits in a rural community that might have limited attractiveness otherwise ,” suggested Dawos - www.theborneopost.com
Speaking to The Borneo Post, federal Deputy Minister of Tourism Datuk Dr James Dawos Mamit said that he had come to his understanding that SLTA since last year had organised seven international tennis championships which had attracted competitors from 35 countries.
“So you could figure out how much revenue these international events had generated for the state’s tourism industry. The incomes are from participants’ entrance fees, hotel-stay, and souvenirs and so on,” he added.
Dawos suggested that sports association could start to tap the potential and benefits of small scale sport events as tourist attraction in Sarawak and also said that sports’ tourists could be categorised into active sport tourist and passive sport tourists.
Quoting researcher’s findings Dawos revealed that the results indicated that tourists who visited the state are those motivated to seek active sport-oriented vacations and on the other hand, passive sport tourists are motivated by social factors and the need to escape from over stimulating situations.
“The fact that sport events in Malaysia attract tourists is well established and prominent examples include the Formula One Grand Prix, Commonwealth Games, South East Asian Games, and Thomas Cup Badminton Finals.
Sports event generates diverse and heterogeneous flows of travellers that may include fans, athletes, coaches, media, team personnel, parents and family members.
Despite the significance of sports event as a form of tourist attraction, it could also promote the natural and rural beauty of Sarawak to sports tourists who might be adventurers and explorers who prefer outdoor activities, or the seeker who might be attracted to the peaceful and tranquil setting,” added Dawos.
He also has the view that sports-body needs to work with local businesses, tour operators, local hotels and restaurants so that these businesses can give a percentage of sales commission from package tours directly to the sports associations who organise the tours.
“For example, if a tour operator books a hotel in the area as accommodation for a sports tour group, a 10% sales commission could be shared among the tour operator and sports-body. And while that sport events are not just for big cities and much benefit can also be realised through small amateur sporting events similar to hosting a mega sporting event. More importantly, the small scale sports events are also an effective means of securing economic benefits in a rural community that might have limited attractiveness otherwise ,” suggested Dawos - www.theborneopost.com
Lucky day for duo
FOR two young tennis players, Imran Daniel Abdul Hazli and Nurin Nabilah Roslan, the chance to take part in the recent ATP Malaysian Open coaching clinic was too good an opportunity to pass up.
Seven-year-old Imran and 14-year-old Nurin were among 16 junior players handpicked by the Lawn Tennis Association of Malaysia (LTAM) to join the clinic, which was conducted by Dutchman Igor Sijsling and Brazilian Marcelo Melo.
Daniel, ranked third in the national boys' Under-10 rankings, said: "This is the first time I've taken part in such a clinic and I can't believe how tall these players are!
"I learned quite a bit and I hope one day to become a professional player just like Sijsling and Melo'
Daniel is the son of former national player, Abdul Hazli Zainuddin, who was once ranked second behind V. Selvam.
Nurin, meanwhile, said the experience was truly life changing.
"The clinic was a real eye-opener for me. The players told us so much in that one hour," she gushed.
"I tried my best to learn as much as possible and I will certainly become a better player after this."
The coaching clinic was conducted at the tournament practice courts at Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
Also present at the clinic was LTAM secretary Ibrahim Abu Bakar.
Sijsling was impressed with some of the participants.
"Even though it was a short clinic, I saw some glimpses of potential from a few of the players.
It was nice to do something like this as we get to see the future of tennis," he said.
Sijsling, the World No 87, who won three Challengers this season, reached the quarter-finals in the Malaysian Open, before bowing out to top seed David Ferrer of Spain.
Melo said he enjoys conducting coaching clinic.
"It feels good to mingle with kids and see what they can do here. A few had some nice touches and maybe one day one of them may even go on to become a big star," said Melo, who plays doubles.- www.nst.com.my
Monaco's next aim is breaking into top five
ARGENTINE Juan Monaco wants to take his game to a higher level and move closer to the top five by the end of the 2013 season.
He also aims to break the domination of the "Big Four" -- Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray -- who have been winning all the Grand Slams for the past few years.
Monaco returned to the top-10 officially yesterday after clinching the Malaysian Open title on Sunday and is only the fourth player on the ATP World Tour to win four titles this season.
"I'd like to be closer to the top five. I also want to be a consistent top 10 player," said Monaco on Sunday.
"If I continue to work hard with my team on being a more complete player then it will be achievable.
"I won my first title on hard court here and this is a huge progress. I will continue to make an impact as long as I stay injury-free."
Monaco, who had outlasted Japan's Kei Nishikori in a tight semi-final on Saturday, took a see-sawing match 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 for his fourth title of the year, after Vina del Mar, Houston and Hamburg.
The 28-year-old's dream, however, is to break the dominance of the top four ranked players.
"It is all down to hard work and talent. I need to improve in all aspects of my game and also be more aggressive in order to break them.
"Being aggressive is important as I need to be in control of each game (not depend on others to make mistakes)," he said.
Monaco is close to earning a spot in the World Tour Finals in London but must first do well in Tokyo and then Beijing.
Only the top eight players will qualify for the annual tournament.
The Malaysian Open also turned out to be a memorable affair for several upcoming players.
Canada's Vasek Pospisil made the most of the opportunity in the main draw by reaching his first ever tour quarter-finals before bowing out to Monaco.
On the local front, Si Yew Ming created history by becoming the first local to win a match in the tournament.
Yew Ming defeated national junior Colin Wong in the first round of qualifiers but lost tamely his next match to India's Sanam Singh.
Florida-based Assri Merzuki was the most impressive among the local juniors.
The 18-year-old won a set before losing to an experienced opponent in the singles qualifiers and then played in the doubles main draw with Syed Agil Syed Naguib. - www.nst.com.my
He also aims to break the domination of the "Big Four" -- Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray -- who have been winning all the Grand Slams for the past few years.
Monaco returned to the top-10 officially yesterday after clinching the Malaysian Open title on Sunday and is only the fourth player on the ATP World Tour to win four titles this season.
"I'd like to be closer to the top five. I also want to be a consistent top 10 player," said Monaco on Sunday.
"If I continue to work hard with my team on being a more complete player then it will be achievable.
"I won my first title on hard court here and this is a huge progress. I will continue to make an impact as long as I stay injury-free."
Monaco, who had outlasted Japan's Kei Nishikori in a tight semi-final on Saturday, took a see-sawing match 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 for his fourth title of the year, after Vina del Mar, Houston and Hamburg.
The 28-year-old's dream, however, is to break the dominance of the top four ranked players.
"It is all down to hard work and talent. I need to improve in all aspects of my game and also be more aggressive in order to break them.
"Being aggressive is important as I need to be in control of each game (not depend on others to make mistakes)," he said.
Monaco is close to earning a spot in the World Tour Finals in London but must first do well in Tokyo and then Beijing.
Only the top eight players will qualify for the annual tournament.
The Malaysian Open also turned out to be a memorable affair for several upcoming players.
Canada's Vasek Pospisil made the most of the opportunity in the main draw by reaching his first ever tour quarter-finals before bowing out to Monaco.
On the local front, Si Yew Ming created history by becoming the first local to win a match in the tournament.
Yew Ming defeated national junior Colin Wong in the first round of qualifiers but lost tamely his next match to India's Sanam Singh.
Florida-based Assri Merzuki was the most impressive among the local juniors.
The 18-year-old won a set before losing to an experienced opponent in the singles qualifiers and then played in the doubles main draw with Syed Agil Syed Naguib. - www.nst.com.my
Monday, 1 October 2012
A first for Monaco in KL
SECOND seed Juan Monaco recorded his first win on hardcourt at the ATP Malaysian Open for his seventh career title after battling past Frenchman Julien Benneteau 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 in an epic men's singles final at Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
The World No 11, however, had to produce his best tennis to subdue an inspired Benneteau, the World No 34, who despite carrying a forearm injury, was determined to become the first 30-over player to capture his maiden tour title since Aussie Wayne Arthurs, who at 33, won in Scottsdale in 2005.
Argentine Monaco, who spent three weeks as a 10th ranked in July, will return to the top-10 when the official rankings are released today.
The 28-year-old, who also won titles in Vina del Mar, Houstan and Hamburg this season, now has a fighting chance of qualifying for his first World Tour Finals in London in November. Only the top eight ranked players will advance to the annual competition.
"I am very happy with the win and how I played throughout the week. Benneteau is a fighter and I always had to be at the top of my game as if I hadn't, I would have lost to him today (yesterday)," said Monaco yesterday.
"This is my first hardcourt win and for that I will always remember Malaysia. I had a great time here, it's a great tournament and I would also like to thank the fans for their support. I will return next year," said Monaco.
"The win here will definitely inspire me to try harder in forthcoming tournaments in Tokyo and Shanghai. I rather focus on my tournaments than think about London."
Benneteau, the seventh seed, called for the trainer twice during the match for his troubled right forearm and another time for a thigh problem.
"I gave my best but it was not enough. I had pain in my forearm two days ago but it was gone until today (yesterday) when I was doing my warm-ups before the final.
"I got it treated and bandaged. It was tough in the first set as the injury affected my serves. The forearm, however, was fine in the following sets as it was warm and hot after treatment."
It was a thrilling first set, which saw both players exchange breaks on four occasions before Monaco sealed the set with a decisive winner in the 12th game. The proceedings in that game lasted about 20 minutes with Monaco only clinching it on his 11th set point.
But a more relaxed Benneteau was quick to break the opening game of the second set but was immediately broken back by Monaco.
The Frenchman, however, managed to get all the crucial play in the fifth game which he held on en route to winning the set.
Monaco gained the upper hand in the third set with a break in the sixth game. He held match point on Benneteau's serve in the eighth game but couldn't convert it before making sure of victory in the next game.
Monaco added: "I saw Benneteau calling for the trainer after the first set for treatment but despite this, he became stronger and I had to play aggressive throughout the match." - www.nst.com.my
Peya-Soares on a high
THIRD seeds Alexander Peya of Austria and Bruno Soares of Brazil captured their first ATP Tour men's doubles title in only their fourth tournament together at the Malaysian Open at Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
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