National keglers must buck up or face axe By Ajitpal Singh

While the chop is not imminent for the national bowlers who failed to win even one medal in the Men's World Championships in Bangkok, they have been warned that this is not a permanent stand.

The Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Congress (MTBC), while disappointed with the showing, won't indulge in rash actions and is prepared to give the keglers another chance.

However, with a host of youngsters waiting to be promoted, MTBC high performance manager Cheah Ban Cheng (pictured) said the seniors must perform in training and tournaments to safeguard their positions.

"We cannot simply take drastic action like dropping those in the senior squad, as they are core bowlers," said Ban Cheng yesterday.

Alex Liew, Zulmazran Zulkifli, Aaron Kong, Daniel Lim, Adrian Ang and Muhd Nur Aiman were the Malaysian cast in Bangkok.

"The seniors have delivered before and we just can't drop them because of one poor outing.

"There were several aspects which led to their failure and one of them was their inability to adapt with the long oil condition in Bangkok," he said.

"But they have to perform consistently for nobody's position is permanent. The bowlers know this."

The men will report for training next week to prepare for the Ankara Open in Turkey on Sept 13-21.

"However, I'm unsure whether all six will get a chance to compete in Ankara as the National Sports Council has made it clear that funding will be limited after the Beijing Olympic Games."

The women bowlers, except for Esther Cheah and Shalin Zulkifli, are likely to compete in the Taiwan Open on Oct 24-Nov 2.

Esther, who is based in Michigan, the United States, will be busy with regional events while Shalin will be competing in the Women's US professional tour.

Ban Cheng also said MTBC will not request the NSC to extend bowling consultant Richard Shockley's contract.

The American was hired three months ago to help national coach Holloway Cheah prepare the bowlers for the World Youth Championships and men's world meet.

"We may opt to hire him or another consultant next year to prepare the bowlers for the women's world meet in the United States."