16th April, Bangkok: Malaysians made a clean sweep of the Masters finals at the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open atfer Nora Lyana Natasia and Muhd Rafiq Ismail won the Women's Open and Men's Open titles.

2015 Asian Youth Singles gold medalist, Nora Lyana needed only on game to defeat third-seed, Esther Cheah in the all-Malaysian women title match, 247-214 to win her first international open crown.

Nora Lyana got off to a cracking start with three strikes-in-a-row as Cheah had an early opened frame in the first. Although the challenger fought back with five strikes-in-a-row from the third frame, the champion matched Cheah with four additional strikes to put the match beyond her opponent.

"After finishing as top seed in Round 3 finals, I had a good line to bowl in," said the 18-year-old Nora Lyana, who had a good outing at the 2015 Asian Youth winning the Singles gold and three silver medals in the Doubles, Team and All Events in Macau last month.

"During the warmup, the line I was bowling well was good and I was very confident before the start of the match. Although I was a bit tense in the beginning but when I had three strikes to staft off with, I was more relaxed."

The first runner-up sailed past second-seed, Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia and winner of the first match, Sin Li Jane, 258-190-227 to square off with the top seed, Nora Lyana in the finals.

Sixth-seed, Li Jane won the first match with an easy victory over fourth-seed, Tracy See of Singapore and fifth-seed, Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia, 238-173-184 before losing in the second match.

The champion earned top spot after winning the earlier six-games Round 3 finals with 1305. Roumimper finished second with 1291 while Cheah took third spot with 1288. Tracy See and Shalin finished fourth and fifth with 1258 and 1243 respectively.

Li Jane, who had a poor start, stormed home with two big games of 228 and 241 to clinch sixth and final stepladder spot with 1213.

In the men's open division, 2015 Asian Youth four gold medalist and top seed, Muhd Rafiq needed a second game to beat challenger and fifth-seed, Muhd Nur Aiman in another all-Malaysian title match.

Muhd Rafiq lost the first game to Muhd Aiman, 185-197 to go into the second deciding match. The 18-year-old made no mistake by starting off with four strikes-in-a-row as his compatriot had an early opened frame.

Muhd Aiman bounced back with five strikes-in-a-row while Muhd Rafiq had a split in the fifth frame putting the advantage back to Muhd Aiman. But a costly single pin miss in the seventh frame gave Muhd Rafiq the confidence to strike out and take the match and the title, 256-216.

"The two lanes we are on were quite different and I struggled in the first game," confessed Muhd Rafiq. "But when the lanes were drier in the second game, I was well matched up to the condition.

"I knew Aiman would be a tough opponent but I believed that if I can make good shots, I had a good chance of beating him. It has been fantastic for me in the two championships that I have competed in and I'm now looking forward to the Malaysian Open next month to add more trophies to my collection."

The first runner-up had breezed past second-seed Lee Tak Man of Macau and third-seed, Kim Bolleby of Thailand, 246-206-197 in the all-lefty second match. Muhd Aiman also won the first all-lefty stepladder match, 243-225-203 against fourth-seed, Naif Oqab of UAE and sixth-seed, Alex Liew of Malaysia.

All the top 6 men stepladder finalists were left-handers. Muhd Rafiq topped Round 3 finals with 1416 followed by Lee in second with 1348 and Bolleby third with 1324.

Naif Oqab, Muhd Aiman and Alex Liew made the stepladder finals in fourth, fifth and sixth positions with 1298, 1290 and 1257 respectively. Joshua Chow of Hong Kong, another left-hander missed the cut by a single pin in seventh position.

The Men's Open champion won 300,000 Thai baht (approx. US$9,250) with the first runner-up settling for 150,000 baht and second runner-up taking home 75,000 baht. The Women's champion picked up 100,000 baht (approx. US$3,000).

The top 16 Asian men and top 8 Asian women qualified for the ABF Tour - Thailand which will be held at the same bowling centre tomorrow.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

16th April, Bangkok: Muhd Nur Aiman of Malaysia topped the Men's Open Round 2 finals of the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open as Alisha Iman Cheong, Esther Cheah and Dayang Khairuniza finished one-two-three in the Women's Open division.

Left-hander, Aiman topped the field of 30 players with 1409 ahead of a second lefty, Lee Tak Man of Macao and Sam Cooley of Australia second and third with 1336 and 1333 respectively.

Eric Tseng of Hong Kong and Syimir Abdul Razak of Malaysia completed the top five with 1305 and 1298 while the cut in 18th position went to Ahmad Muaz of Malaysia after he beat Hareb Al Mansoori of UAE in a one-ball roll-off to break the tie at 1180.

The top 18 men will be joined by the top 3 local and top 3 overseas men seeded qualifiers for another six games in Round 3 finals all pinfalls dropped later today.

Meanwhile, Alisha Iman snatched top spot in her fifth and sixth games with 236 and 232 for a total of 1314. Pace-setter, Esther Cheah settled for second with 1283 while Khairuniza took third with 1263.

2015 Asian Youth Singles gold medalist, Nora Lyana Natasia of Malaysia and competriot, Syaidatul Afifah completed the top 5 with 1248 and 1236 respectively. The cut in 8th position went to Shalin Zulkifli with 1192.

Milki Ng of Hong Kong missed the cut by 13 pins despite finishing strongly with 215. The top 8 women joined by the top 3 local and top 3 overseas women seeded qualifiers for another six games in Round 3 finals later today.

The top 6 men and top 6 women finishers at the end of Round 3 will advance to the stepladder shootout finals. The Men's Open champion will earn 300,000 Thai baht (approx. US$9,250) and the Women's Open 100,000 baht (approx. US$3,000).

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

14h April, Bangkok: Left-handers continued to dominate the qualifying rounds of the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open with Naif Oqab of UAE and Sharon Koh of Malaysia topping the Men's Open and Women's Open standings at the end of the third block.

Overnight leader, Naif Oqab breezed through his third block with 1123 for a 15-game tally of 3470 to lead the top 3 overseas qualifiers for a bye into Round 3 finals. Michael Mak of Hong Kong topped Squad A to move into the top bracket in second with 3433.

A second left-hander and 2015 Asian Youth four gold medalist, Muhd Rafiq Ismail of Malaysia finished third with 3388.

Two of the top 3 local spots were also occupied by left-handers. Atchariya Cheng topped the chart with 3459 followed by defending champion, Kim Bolleby in second with 3340. Phumin Klanbida, a right-hander took third spot with 3295.

Squad C leader, Sam Cooley of Australia headed the mixed pool with 3325 ahead of Lau Kwun Ho of Hong Kong in second and another left-hander, Muhd Nur Aiman of Malaysia third with 3307 and 3300 respectively.

Ironically, the cut at 26th position went to yet another southpaw, Alex Liew of Malaysia with a 15-game total of 3013, averaging 200.87. Missing the cut by five pins was Johnathan Chan of Malaysia with 3008.

Four qualifiers joined Round 2 finals after finishing in the top 4 of the desperado squad held after the third block. Lefty Joshua Chow of Hong Kong topped the squad with 269 followed by Annop Arromsaranon of Thailand in second with 256.

Nguyen Thanh Pho of Vietnam finished third with 236 while the fourth and final spot went to Dylan Ooi Chin Beng of Malaysia with 224. Ebrahim Aljadi of Kuwait missed by one pin in fifth.

Meanwhile Malaysians dominated the Women's Open table with Sharon Koh, Sin Li Jane and 2015 Asian Youth Masters gold medalist, Natasha Roslan occupying the top 3 overseas spots with 3281, 3276 and 3230 respectively.

Kantaporn Singhabubpha, Korngunya Aree and Yanee Saebe were the top 3 Thai women qualifiers with 3107, 2950 and 2900 pinfalls.

The top 8 positions in the mixed pool were also held by Malaysians with Esther Cheah heading the standings with 3218. The cut at 18th position went to Natthida Sertluecha of Thailand with 2805, averaging 187.00. 2015 Asian Youth Team bronze medalist, Kristin Quah of Singapore missed the cut by 12 pins with a total of 2793.

Qualifiers in the Men's Open mixed pool (26 players) plus top 4 from the desperado squad will bowl six games in Round 2 finals. The field will be cut to 18 and joined by the top 3 local and top 3 overseas qualifiers for another six games in Round 3 finals.

The top 6 will advance to the stepladder finals. Qualifiers in the Women's Open mixed pool (18 players) will contest six games in Round 2 finals. The field will be cut to 8 and joined by the top 3 local and top 3 overseas qualifiers for another six games in Round 3 finals. Again the top 6 finishers will proceed to the stepladder finals shootout.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

13th April, Bangkok: World Championships Singles bronze medalist, Sam Cooley of Australia cracked into the top 3 positions of the Men's Open qualifying round after topping Squad C of the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open.

Cooley downed lines of 257, 234, 247, 227 and 228 for a superb 1193 five-games series in the second block and a 10-game total of 2276 to move into third position in the overall standings.

Overnight leader, Naif Oqab of UAE remained in the lead with 2347 after winning Squad B with another superb 1183 in the second block earlier today. Lau Kwun Ho of Hong Kong moved up to second with 2279 after topping Squad A.

Michael Mak of Hong Kong missed the cut in fourth to head the mixed pool with 2198. Lee Tak Man of Macau, who was second in the first block, managed only 1005 for a total of 2169 to slip down to sixth position overall.

Left-hander, Atchariya Cheng posted the highest five-game series of the day in Squad B to take over the lead in the local pool with 2249. Defending champion, Kim Bolleby, who topped the last squad of the day with 1200, moved into second with 2255.

Phumin Klanbida slipped down to third with 2248. Yannaphon Larpapharat, who was third in the first block, dropped off the top bracket to end up sixth in the mised pool.

The current cut at 26th position went to Johnathan Chan of Malaysia with a total of 1980, averaging 198.00. 2012 Thailand Open champion, Surasak Manuwong is off the cut by one pin.

A one-game desperado squad will be held for the Men's Open division only, immediately after the last squad for the top 4 to join Round 2 finals.

Meanwhile, Sharon Koh of Malaysia, who was second in the first block, took over top spot in the Women's Open overseas pool with 2278 after winning Squad A with 1167. Team-mate, Dayang Khairuniza slipped down to second with 2217.

2015 Asian Youth Singles gold medalist, Nora Lyana Natasia of Malaysia took third place with 2193 while Esther Cheah missed the top bracket by 11 pins to head the mixed pool with 2182.

Youth Under-18 Masters first runner-up, Kantaporn Singhabubpha remained in the lead of the local pool with a 10-game total of 2126. Tanaprang Sathean, who topped Squad D, moved into second with 1917.

Kritsanakorn Sangaroon occupied third spot with 1914. The current cut for the Women's Open in 18th position went to Krongunya Aree of Thailand with 1869, averaging 186.90. Bowlers will resume with their third and final block of five games tomorrow.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

12th April, Bangkok: Dechochai Tinjirathip of Thailand made the Men's Open top three despite finishing fifth to Syimir Abdul Razak of Malaysia in the last squad of the first block qualifying round at the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open.

2013 AMF World Cup champion, Syafiq Ridhwan of Malaysia had a superb start with 248 in his opening game to lead 2014 World Championships Singles and Trios bronze medalist, Sam Cooley of Australia in second, four pins adrift.

But yet another left-hander and 2014 Malaysian Open champion, Muhd Nur Aiman of Malaysia took over the lead after the second game with the Aussie still in second and Syafiq slipping to third.

The lead changed hands again when a third Malaysian, Syimir Abdul Razak surged into the front with a big game of 259 in the third to move five pins ahead of Aiman.

Syimir lost the lead after the fourth game back to Syafiq but bounced back brilliantly with a splendid 254 in the fifth and final game to top the squad with 1123. Aiman settled for second with 1107 and Syafiq third with 1086.

Cooley finished fourth with 1083 while Dechochai rounded out the top 5 with 1058. The Thai's effort put him third in local pool of the overall standings behind Yannaphon Larpapharat and Phumin Klanbida first and second.

Syimir missed the top 3 of the overseas pool by 21 pins to settle for third in the mixed pool. Two lefties, Naif Oqab of UAE and Lee Tak Man of Macau continued to share the lead followed by Lau Kwun Ho of Hong Kong in third.

Meanwhile, Tracy See of Singapore topped the Women's Open Squad C with 1039 but counld not topple the top 3 in the overseas pool ending in ninth. Dayang Khairuniza and Sharon Koh of Malaysia remained one-two.

Joan Cheng of Hong Kong also retained third spot while Syaidatul Afifah of Malaysia headed the mixed pool with 1097. Bowlers will resume with their second block of five games tomorrow and the third and final block of five games on April 14.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

12th April, Bangkok: Lee Tak Man of Macau topped the third squad of the Men's Open qualifying round to share the overall lead with Squad B leader and left-hander, Naif Oqab at the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open.

2014 Incheon Asian Games Gold medalist, Yannaphon Larpapharat of Thailand got off the block with a splendid 239 to lead a field of 15 men in Squad D followed by last year;s ABF Tour Thailand leg champion, SHaik Abdul Hameed of India in second.

Newcomer, Francis Tan of Malaysia was quick to take advantage after Yannaphon managed only 193 by moving into the lead after two good games of 212 and 243. The Malaysian held the lead after third game with another superb 237 followed closely by Lee Tak Man moving up to second.

Lee rolled 243 in the fourth and ended with another strong game of 241 to end his first block with 1164 and tieing with Squad B leader, Naif.

Tan recovered in his final game with 234 to take second spot with 1125, 39 pins behind Lee. Yannaphon settled for third with 1119.

Yannaphon moved into the overall lead of the Top 3 local pool to possibly earn a bye into Round 3 finals. Phumin Klanbida and Atchariya Cheng slipped down a place each into second and third.

Naif and Lee shared top spot in the overseas pool with Squad A leader, Lau Kwun Ho of Hong Kong dropping one place to third.

Women's Open Squad D leader, Thitima Thongsaard moved into second spot in the local pool after she posted 991. Tanaprang Sathean, who finished second to Thitima, occupied third spot with 990. Squad B leader, Kantaporn Singhabubpha remained in the lead with 1095.

The top 3 spots in the Women's Open overseas pool remained unchanged with Malaysians Dayang Khairuniza and Sharon Koh one-two and Joan Cheng of Hong Kong third.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

12th April, Bangkok: Naif Oqab of United Arab Emirates took over the lead of the Men's Open first block qualifying round at the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open after leading the second squad.

Naif started off a cracking pace with 252 but had to trail Atchariya Cheng of Thailand by 6 pins ahead of Lapasdanai Chuseang of Thailand in third. The Emirati southpaw moved into the lead after the second game with 216 as Atchariya stumbled to a 182.

The leader kept a fast pace with 214 and 244 in his next two games before ending strongly with 238 to take Squad B with 1164 and moved into top spot overall.

2015 ABF Tour Bahrain leg champion, Yaqoub Al Shatti of Kuwait stormed home to snatch second spot with 1079 while Phumin Klanbida of Thailand clinched third spot with 1076.

Atchariya settled for fourth position with 1037 while ex-Malaysian national bowler, Isaac Russell completed the top 5 with 1030.

Squad A leader, Lau Kwun Ho slipped to second overall with 1144 ahead of his team-mate, Eric Tseng in third with 1134, who would earn a bye into Round 3 finals if they can maintain their positions after three blocks.

Phumin occupied the local top spot followed by Atchariya in second and Attitarat Cheng in third with 1037 despite finishing sixth in the second squad.

In the women's division, Youth Under-18 Masters first runner-up, Kantaporn Singhabubpha of Thailand, who topped the Women's squad B, took the local top spot with 1095. Squad A leader, Dayang Khairuniza of Malaysia retained the overseas top spot with 1187.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

12th April, Bangkok: Malaysian national bowler, Dayang Khairuniza set a high benchmark of 1187 in the opening squad of the Women's Open first block qualifying round at the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open on Saturday.

Dayang got off the block with a sizzling 266 but was content to trail team-mate and 2015 Asian Championships Doubles gold medalist, Syaidatul Afifah by 2 pins. Back-to-back strong games from 2014 Asia Ranked No. 1, Sin Li Jane gave her the lead after the second game.

Li Jane continued with another superb game of 223 after the third game before handing the lead over to Dayang after the fourth game. Dayang closed out the block with another high game of 248 to lead the squad with 1187.

Reigning Malaysian national champion, Sharon Koh showed a glimsp of her strong form to finish second with 1111 while 2013 Asian Youth All Events bronze medalist and Hong Kong's best finisher, Joan Cheng taking up third with 1103.

2015 Asian Youth Singles gold medalist, Nora Lyana Natasia of Malaysia took fourth spot with 1097 while early pace-setter, Li Jane completed the top 5 with 1093.

Meanwhile in a small field of only eight men comprising msotly Hong Kong national bowlers, Lau Kwun Ho, who led in the early stages, bounced back with a stunning 267 to nick the lead with 1144.

Eric Tseng settled for second spot with 1134, just 10 pins adrift while two-time World Bowling Tour runner-up, Michael Mak finished third with 1107. Tony Wong and the sole Malaysian, Nadzmi Fikri rounded out the top 5.

There are four squads of 24 bowlers each registered comprising of men and women for the championships. Each bowler will bowl three squads of five games each over the next three days. The top 3 local and top 3 overseas qualifiers will earn a bye into Round 3 finals.

Qualifiers positioned 1 to 26 in the Men's Open division and qualifiers positioned 1 to 18 in the Women's Open division will contest the 6 games Round 2 finals. The men's field will be cut to 18 and the women's to 8 to advance to Round 3 finals for another 6 games.

The top 6 men and top 6 women at the end of Round 3 finals will proceed to the stepladder finals with the first match for bowlers seeded 4 to 6 over one game. The winner will meet bowlers seeded 2 to 3 for another game in the second match.

The winner will earn the right to challenge the top seed for the title on a beat-twice format. The men champion will pocket the top prize of 300,000 Thai baht (approx. US$9,500) and the women champion 100,000 Thai baht (approx. US$3,000).

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

10th April, Bangkok: 2015 Asian Youth Team silver medalist, Nur Syazwani Sahar scored a sensational final game to snatch victory in the Youth Under-21 Masters title at the 41st MWA Singha Thailand International Open.

Syazwani downed 1680 pinfalls to pip team-mate and pace-setter, Siti Aishahtun Hussin's 1672 total to the title at Blu-O Rhythm & Bowl Ratchayothin on Thursday. The champion, who was in seventh position, 48 pins behind leader Aishahtun going into the eighth and last game.

It was then that Syazwani pulled out a 247 final game to nick the victory as Aishahtun's 191 left her eight pins shot of top spot. The girls were given a 9-pin handicap per game bowling against the boys.

"I didn't even know I had won until my last throw in the last game," said Syazwani, who was delighted to win her first international title.

"I didn't really think much going into the last game. I just tried to make good shots into the pocket as many as I could. I was just trying to stay slow, calm and focused and it worked out."

Singapore's Kuek Qi En finished third with 1646. The win, along with the 50,000 Thai baht (approx. US$1,500) cash prize more than made up for her missing out on the Masters event of the Asian Youth Championships in Macau last month.

The day only got better as Malaysia went on to make a clean sweep of the titles. Sarawak's Gillian Lim Siew Geok picked up the Under-18 title by just five pins.

Along with the 72-pin handicap, Gillian totaled 1607 to pip Thailand's Kantaphorn Singhabubpha. Malaysia's Abang Afiq Yazid finished third with 1592.

In the Under-15 category, Malaysia also enjoyed a one-two finish thanks to Musayyar Haji Khalid and Melvin Gilbert Gimang with 1246 and 1158 respectively. Thailand's Teerachata Rchatahiranyakan was third with 1137.

Photos by Apichart Wattanaphongsakorn in Bangkok.