Bowling ’em over: Faten Najihah Ahmad Faik knocked down an impressive score of 3,784 pins throughout the first three days of the competition to earn the women’s All-Events title.
PETALING JAYA: National bowler Faten Najihah Ahmad Faik was beaming with joy after achieving a big breakthrough in the ongoing National and Interstate Championships.
Faten, representing Pahang, knocked down an impressive score of 3,784 pins throughout the first three days of the competition to earn the women’s All-Events title at the Sunway Megalanes in Petaling Jaya yesterday.
Sarawakian Nerosha Keligit took silver with 3,595 pins while Sin Li Jane of Perak settled for bronze (3,583 pins).
Prior to this achievement, Faten teamed up with Nor Amiera Sharweena Shahrulnizam, Dewi Amer Aprianti and Fatin Najihah Azhar to compete in the women’s team event.
Despite their best efforts, they finished 10th with a combined score of 4,128 pins.
Faten got off to a strong start by securing the women’s singles gold medal after scoring 1,314 pins on Wednesday and that has provided a significant confidence boost for her remaining events.
However, in the doubles event, Faten could not repeat her success with her partner Nor Amiera Sharweena Shahrulnizam, finishing in eighth place with 2,252 pins on Thursday.
It may not be a day of double happiness for Faten but she was satisfied with her overall performance.
“This is the first time I won gold in this category, so I’m happy about it,” said Faten, who made her first appearance in the women’s category in 2019.
“Last year, I had to skip this tournament after testing positive for Covid-19 just a day before the competition.
“My performance on the first day (of the competition) was decent ... I felt confident and had a good start.
“I simply stuck to my game, maintained my focus and executed my shots consistently.
“I had been training for the past two to three weeks and I was determined to bring home a medal.
“I stuck to my usual game because I know that putting too much pressure on myself will make things hard for me and can hinder my performance.
“As for the team event, we enjoyed our game and did not pressure ourselves.”
Faten has set her sights on achieving a podium finish in the national championships next Wednesday.
Her best achievement in this local meet was winning gold medals in the girls’ singles, doubles and all-events, and silver in the team event in 2011.
Women Team:
1. Adelia Nur Irwan Syazalee, Anis Shazlin Zulkhisham, Shalin Zulkifli, Siti Safiyah Amirah Abdul Rahman (Sel) 4,604,
2. Nerosha Keligit, Nur Aina Kamilia Abdul Ayub, Nur Hazirah Ramli, Gillian Lim (Swk) 4,488,
3. Alyaa Addini Zulamri, Nor Baitul Ayu Atisya Mohd Ayob, Noratiqah Syauqina Hasmidi, Sin Li Jane (Prk) 4,419.
All-events:
1. Faten Najihah Ahmad Faik (Pah) 3,784,
2. Nerosha Keligit (Swk) 3,595,
3. Sin Li Jane (Prk) 3,583.
