Shuttler Siti Nurshuhaini wants to make second Sea Games appearance count

KUALA LUMPUR - After returning empty-handed in her Sea Games debut in Hanoi last May, national badminton women's singles player Siti Nurshuhaini Azman is determined to stand out in her second appearance at the biennial Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. this May.

The 31st edition of the Games was postponed to last year as it could not be held in 2021 because the COVID-19 pandemic was at its height then and thus presents Siti Nurshuhaini another opportunity this year.

Siti Nurshuhaini, who has just recovered from hamstring and heel injuries which she picked up while playing at the Malaysia International Challenge Badminton Championship 2022, in Perak, last December, admitted to being a little surprised by the trust placed by the coaching staff who chose her to represent the country.

She is determined to use the confidence placed in her and the experience of playing in Hanoi to try to improve on her past performance by aiming for a slot in the semi-finals at the 32nd edition of the Games.

"I hope I will be brave. Insyaallah (God willing) I can do my best because I don't want to waste my second chance in Cambodia," she said when met after a training session at the Akademi Badminton Malaysia, Bukit Kiara, here.

Besides Siti Nurshuhaini, Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) Singles Coaching director Wong Choong Hann yesterday also announced that Tan Zhing Yi and Wong Ling Ching were selected to participate in the women's singles at the 2023 SEA Games.

In Hanoi, the world 193rd ranked shuttler was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Thailand's number two player Pornpawee Chochuwong 17-21, 8-21.

Meantime, the 18-year-old admitted that she needs to get into her game in her first tournament of the year, which is the National Under-21 Championships from March 15 to 19 in Ipoh, Perak.

She aims to emerge as the champion at the meet in Ipoh to boost her spirit to take on the national challenge at the 2023 SEA Games scheduled from May 5 to 17.

Meanwhile, she said the return of K. Letshanaa to BAM starting last Wednesday will make the competition healthier to influence the coaching staff to choose truly deserving players in any tournament after this.

Letshanaa was reported to have left the national team in February last year, following a back injury.

Last Sunday, Letshanaa won her first title of the season after emerging as the women's singles champion at the Uganda International badminton tournament by defeating Turkish representative, Neslihan Yigit, 21-11, 21-8. - BERNAMA