Veteran bowler Siti Safiyah Amirah Abdul Rahman is beaming with pride after seeing younger teammates making their mark at the recent National Championships. Mohd Hazim Alihanafiah and Gillian Lim, both only 23, stunned their seniors to capture the Masters title in the men’s and women’s category respectively at the Sunway Mega Lane on Tuesday. Safiyah, who turns 34 next month, is immensely happy to see them out-perform more experienced bowlers and she hopes they can continue to improve and take over from the seniors one day. “The national meet is a good platform for the youngsters to prove that they can beat us seniors,” said Safiyah. “I’m happy to see them playing so well. I hope they can continue to do well and I also hope to see more youngsters following in their footsteps. “When I was their age, it was very hard for me but I still managed to beat the seniors. “We need young blood in the team for next year’s SEA Games and World Championships. We need a strong team with good chemistry. Hopefully, more youngsters can make the team.”

For now, Safiyah herself has no intention of slowing down just yet and her optimism has not been dampened despite finishing 12th in the Masters. “My form was there but it was not good enough to reach the semi-finals. When players switch lanes, we have to adjust to the different patterns on each lane. I failed to do that during my game,” said Safiyah. Safiyah hopes to make some adjustments in her game as she eyes a spot in the squad for the world meet next year. “I hope to make some adjustments in my game and rise again next year,” said Safiyah, who was the first Malaysian to win a professional title on the US Tour when she captured the Wichita Open in 2017. She also bagged a silver in the singles event at the World Championships in 2017. Sin Li Jane has since surpassed Safiyah’s achievement by winning four titles in the US Tour including the US Open this year.