PETALING JAYA: A wiser Ng Tze Yong is primed to do better in his second Asian Championships outing from April 25-30 in Dubai.
In his debut Asian meet last year, the national men’s singles shuttler did not get past the first round after losing to India’s K. Srikanth.
Tze Yong, who is currently ranked No. 26 in the world, has shown good progress since the defeat and is now looking to enjoy a more memorable outing.
The 22-year-old had claimed his biggest career win in his All-England debut in Birmingham a fortnight ago when he toppled Denmark’s world No. 1 and defending champion Viktor Axelsen en route to a quarter-final finish.
The sensational victory was Tze Yong’s second over a top 10 player after he pulled the rug from under Singapore’s world No. 8 and 2021 world champion Loh Kean Yew in the Commonwealth Games at the same venue last August.
He had also made the last eight in the Swiss Open last week.
“Playing in the All-England and Swiss Open was a really good experience for me,” said Tze Yong.
“My performances in Europe have given me more confidence for the Asian Championships and I’m looking forward to it.’’
Tze Yong also assured that he was fit again after retiring from his quarter-final match in the Swiss Open against Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen while trailing 11-21, 0-2, due to swelling in his inner thigh hamstring.
The youngster had resumed training on court on Wednesday.
The Dubai tourney will be the start of a crucial period for Tze Yong with the one year qualification period for the 2024 Paris Olympics set to begin in May.
Tze Yong has set his sights on making the cut for the Olympics by breaking into the top 16 in the world rankings by the end of the one-year period.
After the Dubai tourney, Tze Yong will compete in the Sudirman Cup from May 14-21 in Suzhou, China, and Malaysian Masters from May 23-28.
