PETALING JAYA: A semi-final outing at the National Championships and the encouragement of her teammates have fired up shuttler Siti Nurshuhaini Azman (pic) to raise her game and fight her way up the world rankings.
The 18-year-old Nurshuhaini gave the Badminton Association of Malaysia’s No. 1 women’s singles player K. Letshanaa a run for her money in a thrilling semi-final match before bowing out 21-9, 10-21, 15-21 at Stadium Juara in Bukit Kiara yesterday.
The promising display signalled a return to form for Nurshuhaini, who had suffered a drop in the rankings due to hamstring and ankle injuries which disrupted her plans to compete in more tournaments. She was ranked No. 162 last November but has now fallen to No. 246.
Nurshuhaini is now motivated to fight her way up the rankings again, thanks to her good showing in the national competition and the support of her teammates Wong Ling Ching and Letshanaa.
“My recovery from injuries took time, and I only did light training during that time. But I have fully recovered and I’m more confident to play and compete now,” she said.
Nurshuhaini, who beat R. Kasturi, 21-19, 21-14, to reach the semi-finals, is always asking for pointers from coach K. Yogendran on how to keep improving.
“He always tells me to stay cool and avoid being too eager to win, as I will make more mistakes,” she said.
