Arif Latif hopeful to fill gap left by Wong Choong Hann and Muhammad Hafiz Hashim – Badminton News
Malaysia’s Arif Latif, who emerged as the runner-up in the Asian Junior Championships 2007, is quite optimistic to fill the space left by the elite shuttlers including Wong Choong Hann and Muhammad Hafiz Hashim in the Men’s singles category.
He lost to compatriot and World Number One, Lee Chong Wei, in the final battle of the National Circuit Grand Prix Finals 2011, in Malaysia, last month. All the top Malaysian Men’s singles shuttlers competed in this event to enter into the national squad
of Malaysia.
Arif delivered a tremendous performance throughout the event and proved that he is the best among the back-up players.
Currently, there is no other shuttler who could beat top players from different countries at the international level, except Chong Wei. There is a huge gap between the World Number One and the rest of the Malaysian singles players.
Muhammad Hafiz Hashim left the national squad of Men’s singles that made the situation quite alarming for Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM), as apart from Chong Wei, there is no other shuttler in the top 30 spots in the Men’s singles world rankings.
Among the back-up shuttlers in Men’s singles category, Arif Latif, is one of the best options to promote to the national squad. The young shuttler has the potential to do well and he proved his worth against top players in the world of Badminton. Arif, who
is coached by Hendrawan, is looking forward to represent Malaysia at the international circuit.
BAM is looking forward to fill the skill gap between Chong Wei and rest of the Men’s singles players. Performance Director of BAM, James Selvaraj said that the National Circuit Grand Prix Finals and the following events in the country will determine the
fate of the back-up shuttlers. He added that their evaluation will be made by the coaches of BAM and further action will be taken on their recommendations.
Arif defeated many top players in the National Circuit Grand Prix Finals and proved that he is a strong candidate to occupy Hafiz Hashim’s place. Chong Wei is just unparalleled in Malaysia as he possesses a different level of skills that no other shuttler
has in the country.
Latif is working very hard to enhance his technical and tactical skills, along with the expertise of the game. Currently, he is developing into a more dynamic and competitive shuttler when compared to the rest of his batch-fellows. Chong Wei also said that
Arif is one of the best shuttlers who will serve the country in near future.
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