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Foreign challengers outshine local bowlers on Day 1

 15^th May, Bangkok: Foreign challengers outshone local bowlers as the favorites cruised into the semi finals of the ABF Tour, Thailand leg, at Brunswick RCA Bowl, Bangkok on Saturday evening.

Top-seed Ahmed Shaheen of Qatar (pictured) made the semi finals with Malaysians Adrian Ang, Ben Heng and Daniel Lim taking the other three berths, while Malaysia’s Shalin Zulkifli, Filipina Irene Garcia, Singapore's Valerie Teo and Alice Tay made the women's semi finals.

 Thailand's Yannaphon Larparat was the only local bowler to win his Round 1 match, narrowly defeating fellow-countryman Sithiphol Kunaksorn, 170-169, only to see his hopes dashed when he crashed out to Ahmed Shaheen, 168-237. Last year's Thailand Open champion, Annop Arromsaranon, also made an early exit, losing to Filipino Chester King, 154-201, ending the country's hope in the inaugural ABF Tour - Thailand.

 Shaheen will meet Ang in the first semi final match, while the other will be an all-Malaysian affair between Heng and Lim.

 The show went to the Malaysian bowlers when 16-year-old Ang, Heng and second-seed Lim all won their Round 1 and 2 matches to occupy three of the four semi final berths. Ang knocked out Qataran Abdulla Al-Qattan, 206-181, in Round 2, while Heng outclassed King, 268-221, in his second match. Thailand Open runner-up Lim looked set to erase his disappointment by booking his passage to glory when he ousted Chinese Taipei’s Wang Tien-Fu, 214-202.

 In the women's division, Saowapa Kunaksorn could not carry on Thailand's charge on home ground when she was defeated by Singapore's Alice Tay, 131-205, in Round 2, despite knocking our fellow-countrywoman Panumart Srisuratipipit, 226-194, in the earlier round. Tay was joined by 18-year-old Valerie Teo after she easily beat Malaysia's ex-international Low Poh Lian, 224-172, to book her semi final spot.

 Thailand Open runner-up, Shalin Zulkifli, showed her determination not to repeat an early exit in the first leg by knocking out her less experienced teammate, Esther Cheah, 225-179, to make the semi finals. The last semi final spot was taken up by Filipina  Irene Garcia when she outclassed her opponent Jennifer Tan of Singapore, 241-160, in Round 2.

 Valerie Teo is matched against Irene Garcia in the first women's semi final while Alice Tay will face off with the determined Shalin Zulkifli in the other.

 The ABF Tour comprises six Legs and a Grand Final, the Tournament of Champions. Each Leg will be staged over two competition days where the top 16 men and 16 women Asian bowlers from the preceding International Open Masters Event (Open Grade) will compete in a one-game match play knock-out competition for the individual men's and women's titles.

 The Tournament of Champions will be staged over four competition days where the top 16 men and 16 women bowlers (based on ABF Tour ranking points), plus two additional wildcard entries from the West Asia region (thus totaling 18 men in the men's division), will qualify to compete over four rounds of competition for the coveted men's and women's ABF Tour Champion titles.

 The ABF Tour - Thailand is televised live in Thailand and shown on local television stations of the six countries where the tour is being held. It is also broadcast later from parts of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, central Asia, China and Australasia with an estimated audience of around 75 million.

STANDINGS AFTER ROUNDS 1 & 2:
Women’s Draw Sheet