Nur Ain Nabilah-aleena Idam Hope To Create Another Historic Act In Gold Coast

KUALA LUMPUR, June 7 (Bernama) -- National women's lawn bowling pair, Nur Ain Nabilah Tarmizi-Aleena Ahmad Nawawi, is eyeing an opportunity to make another milestone in lawn bowling by becoming the first Malaysians to win the Australian Open in the Gold Coast tomorrow.

Aleena hopes luck will be on their side in Gold Coast again after emerging as champions at the 2023 World Bowls Championships despite first participating in the competition in the women's pairs last September for the first time.

"We want to create history again in the same place. God willing there will be an opportunity and we will try to give the best performance," she said when met after the Sports Writers Association of Malaysia (SAM)-100PLUS 2023 Awards here, last night.

Nur Ain Nabilah-Aleena became the first national lawn bowlers to win the Best Athlete award at the SAM-100PLUS Award.

They beat two national squash stars S. Sivasangari and Ng Eain Yow, wushu athlete Wong Weng Soon and world tenpin bowling champion Natasha Mohamed Roslan.

Last September, the national pair beat their opponents Rebecca Rixon-Connie Leigh Rixon of Malta 15-11 thus ending Malaysia's 15-year wait to emerge as world champions after last winning it in 2008.

Safuan Said who won the men's singles world championship in the 2008 edition in New Zealand, while the women's squad's previous best achievement was the silver medal in the fours event in 2012 in Adelaide.

In the meantime, Nur Ain Nabilah said they will be wary of the threat of the host participants, New Zealand, Canada and Hong Kong who are capable of giving fierce resistance at the tournament ending on June 21.

"The tournament that takes place every year is the biggest competition for us this year after participating in the 15th Asian Lawn Bowls Championship in Pattaya, Thailand, in March," she said.

In March, Nur Ain Nabilah-Aleena helped Malaysia win the women's fours gold together with Nor Farah Ain Abdullah and Syafiqa Haidar Rahman at the Asian Bowling Championships and saw the national team emerge as overall champions with three gold, two silver and two bronze medals.

-- BERNAMA