National bowler Tun Ameerul Hakim Tun Hasnul Azam (pic) wants to end his dry spell in the individual event at the ongoing National Championships at the Sunway Mega Lanes. The 25-year-old did well at the recent Asian Championships in Bangkok when he won the doubles gold with Shaqeem Izwan Teh Shahrul Hafiz Teh and rolled down the team silver. He also showed his prowess in the doubles by winning it with Ahmad Muaz Fishol for Selangor in the Interstate Championships. But after missing out on several Open tournaments this year, Ameerul is bent on getting it right at the national meet. This year, among his notable finishes was the Singapore Open, where he finished fourth and was among the top 10 in the Thailand Open. In the national meet, he is lying at 13th spot with 1,278 pins in the qualifying round. Only the top 24 will qualify for the Masters final. “I missed out on individual glory in the Interstate too but I’m keeping my hopes high in the national meet although the lanes are quite challenging,” said Ameerul. “My position is quite safe but I will bowl again to solidify my position.

“I last won the national meet in 2019. To me, six years is a long wait. Actually, too long, so I hope to get at least a podium spot. Winning, of course, will be brilliant.” Ameerul said he could not take his place for granted as many young bowlers under the Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Confederation (MTBC) development programme were flourishing. “They are not missing spares and so on. Young guns like Shaqeem and Izz Naqiuddin Putera Islahuddin are bowlers with potential. “The younger generation of bowlers can replace us in the next four to five years, which will be a good development for the sport.” Sarawak’s Chong Jun Foo is top in the Masters qualifying with 1,358 pins, while Penang’s Megat Zaqrul Haiqal is second with 1,349. Timmy Tan is third with 1,343. Syazirol Syamsuddin, representing Kedah, is the automatic qualifier after winning the national title last year.