KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 15 (Bernama) -- National bowler Tun Ameerul Luqman Al-Hakim Tun Hasnul Azam came agonisingly close to gold, falling just seven pins short in the men’s singles event at the 28th Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships in Doha, Qatar, today.
Competing at the Qatar Bowling Federation Bowling Centre, Tun Hakim knocked down 1,383 pins over six games to settle for the silver behind gold medallist Abdulrazzaq Mohammad of Kuwait, who registered 1,390. Hong Kong’s Michael Mak Cheuk Yin took bronze with 1,381 pinfalls.
Tun Hakim, 27, had surged into the lead after the fourth game but saw his gold medal hopes dented by a costly fifth-game slump, managing only 165 pinfalls, his lowest score of the competition.
The Malaysian mounted a strong fightback in the final game with an impressive 248, but Abdulrazzaq’s 249 proved decisive as the Kuwaiti clinched the title by a mere seven pins.
Meanwhile, three other Malaysian keglers were placed further behind, with Muhammad Rafiq Ismail (1,377 pinfalls) finishing sixth; Muhd Hazim Alihanafiah (1,367 pinfalls) seventh; and Izz Naqiuddin Putera Islahuddin (1,331 pinfalls) 13th.
Tun Hakim’s silver came a day after national bowler Gillian Lim struck gold in women’s singles in the Nov 12-22 championships.
-- BERNAMA