PETALING JAYA: Men’s singles shuttler Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin (pic) is looking for a confidence boost in the Thailand Masters ahead of the Asia Team Championships from Feb 3-8 in Qingdao, China.
Aidil is getting ready to compete in his first tournament of the year which starts on Tuesday in Bangkok and is raring to go again after a break.
Overall, the world No. 43 enjoyed an encouraging 2025, capturing the Sri Lanka International Challenge title and finishing runner-up in the Super 100 Al Ain Masters.
However, Aidil could not maintain his form towards the end of the year and suffered early round exits in his last four individual competitions.
The independent player is hoping to turn around his fortunes under his coach Nova Armada this year, starting with the Thailand tourney.
“Aidil’s preparations for the Thailand Masters has been going well. His draw for the tournament looks okay and I have set him a target of reaching the quarter-finals first,” said Nova.
“My goal for him for this year is to break into the world’s top 32 rankings and ensure he is on track to fight for a spot in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.”
Aidil will play India’s world No. 38 Kiran George in his opening match in Thailand.
Justin Hoh and Eogene Ewe will also see action in Thailand.
The former has been drawn against homester Kantaphon Wangcharoen in the first round while the latter will start in the qualifying round against India’s Sathish Kumar.
The other Malaysian representatives in the men’s singles are Lee Zii Jia and Jacky Kok.
Zii Jia will play Belgium’s Julien Caraggi in his opener while Jacky has to get past Indonesia’s Yohanes Saut in the qualifying round.
