Young Eain Yow in no hurry to finish his junior years

Squash player Ng Eain Yow (left) will spend Chinese New Year with his father Ng Hong Yuen and mother (standing) Low Soo Goon. - RICKY LAI/The Star

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PETALING JAYA: Junior squash player Ng Eain Yow has the world at his feet right now.

The Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) trainee began the year on a high – winning his third British Junior title to equal veteran Ong Beng Hee’s record and leading Malaysia to a famous victory over Pakistan in the Asian Junior Team Championships final.

Last Sunday, the Kuala Lumpur-boy cemented his status as arguably Malaysia’s best-ever junior player when he won the national Under-19 title. That completed his sweep of all the age-group titles – having also bagged the Under-11, Under-13, Under-15 and Under-17 crowns.

Eain Yow, who turned 17 last month, has bigger plans in mind – including winning a World Junior Championship title and a record fourth British Junior Open crown.

But he’s in no rush.

He is prepared to complete his junior career step by step before working his way up – to a full pro status – without any shortcuts

“I’ve completed every stage there is at the national junior level and my next goal is to work on my ranking (currently No. 218) and get into the top 200 by the end of this year,” said Eain Yow.

“I want to complete everything I can at the junior level ... doing what needs to be done ... while also keeping an eye on the future.

“Winning a world junior title is a goal of mine, but it’s too soon this year.

“Defending champion Diego (Elias) of Peru can still play this year and he is very good ... but I believe it’s possible to reach the final. Realistically, though, making the top four this year will be a good achievement.”

Eain Yow has certainly shown maturity in his thinking and his game. And it is this maturity, and his ability to handle the pressure, that have seen him grow as a player.

“Of course I’d like to play without pressure ... just like everyone else. But I do well in either situation,” said Eain Yow.

“Usually I just forget that I’m the top seed and I go into every match like it’s just another game. Once you start to think too much, you won’t be able to deal with the pressure.

“But even I can’t win everything ... I just try to stay motivated.

“I also like to give professional players a tough fight and take them to the distance.

“This is something I hope the younger players can learn from me. I had seniors like Mohd Addeen Idrakie and Mohd Zul Azri who inspired me to improve ... hopefully, I can do the same for my juniors too.”

But for now, Eain Yow is happy to get a few days’ break to celebrate the Chinese New Year with his family.

“Both my parents are from Kuala Lumpur, so it’s more of a family get-together ... especially since I spend most of my time away in BJSS.

“It’s good to have a break but I’m looking forward to resuming training because I need to step up my game once again for a long year ahead,” added Eain Yow, whose next outing will be the Malaysian Tour Squash Circuit (SSJM) from March 23-27.