Former international Mohd Arif Abdul Latif is the only men
KUALA LUMPUR: Former international Mohd Arif Abdul Latif is the only men’s singles shuttler representing Malaysia in the China Masters in Changzhou from Sept 10-15 – but he hopes to make the biggest noise.
Arif, who has been sponsored by equipment company Fleet since quitting the national team last month, is in the lower half of the draw with second seed Du Pengyu of China.
The others in his half are Chou Tien-chen of Taiwan, Jan O Jorgensen of Denmark, Tommy Sugiarto of Indonesia and Wang Zhengming of China.
Ariff, who will take on Tien-chen in the opening round, is the only Malaysian men’s singles shuttler in the meet, following the Badminton Association of Malaysia’s (BAM) decision to keep all their national players at home.
Arif is happy to see that his participation in international tournaments has increased since turning pro. He will also compete in the Taiwan Open Grand Prix Gold from Sept 3-8 and the Indonesian Open Grand Prix Gold from Sept 24-29.
“I have several tournaments lined up until the end of this year. For a start, I’ll have my hands full in September. I’m looking forward to it. I’ve been working on my physical fitness so that I can maintain my performance in all three Opens,” said Arif.
“It will be great if I can make the top eight in the China Masters.
“In the GP Gold in Taiwan and Indonesia, I will also play in the men’s doubles with former partner Vountus Indra Mawan.
“Vountus and I did quite well in the junior ranks. In fact, we were the boys’ doubles finalists at the Asian Junior Championships in 2006. We lost to Lee Yong-dae-Cho Gun-woo (South Koreans) in the final (at Kuala Lumpur). Hopefully, my journey as a professional will be more fruitful.”
The other independent players taking part in the China Masters are Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif-Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari and Gan Teik Chai-Ong Soon Hock in the men’s doubles and the Ng sisters – Hui Lin-Hui Ern – in the women’s doubles.
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