Showdown in Gold Coast sun – business end of first week arrives

THE first epistle of this year’s Asia Pacific Championships in Australia has reached the business end with candidates only having tomorrow’s remaining rounds of men’s pairs and triples, along with women’s singles and fours, in which to raise their stakes in the finals race.

Two days of qualifying have been completed featuring nineteen bowling nations from Asia and Oceania at three host clubs across the Gold Coast – Musgrave Hill, Club Helensvale and headquarters at Broadbeach.

At Broadbeach on Friday and Saturday the top contenders for honours in the first week’s disciplines will have their best shot at bowls immortality. Success will come to those who have prepared best and demonstrated stealth under pressure – someone has suggested it could be the most difficult examination paper in sport – getting through five days of intense competition against the best players from other bowls nations requires heaps of skill and mental toughness, with a smidgen of luck thrown in.

Challengers still have three chances at finishing in their section’s top three and medal contention tomorrow, while the paramount quest is to be in the section top six to cement their nation’s place in next year’s world championships.

One player who had minimal opportunity to prepare for her title tilt is India’s Tania Choudhury, who was named as second in the national fours line-up but found herself thrust into the blue ribbon singles spot literally at the eleventh hour.

Apparently unfazed, Choudhury added a win over Japan’s Keiko Kurohara to her opening round bye to be pleased and ‘unbeaten’ at mid-afternoon on Day 1. However, next came the female game’s greatest challenge – world and Commonwealth Games champion Jo Edwards – and in one of the event’s major upsets, the smooth-swinging Indian claimed the points 21-19 to complete her day’s commitments.

More was to come this morning when she toppled lively Norfolk Islander Carmen Anderson, winner of world singles titles in 1996 and 2016, while two comfortable victories on the Musgrave Hill turf over America’s Alexis Van Den Bos and Brunei’s Dayang Muntol followed to frame Tania as the only undefeated player on top of Section 2.

Photo: India’s Tania Choudhury is riding a rich vein of form at the Asia Pacific Championships in Australia.

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2019 Asia Pacific Championships, Gold Coast, Australia

Day 2:

Women’s singles:

Sec.1: Rd.4: AUS (Kelsey Cottrell) bt MAC (Bell Chan) 21-1, CAN (Kelly McKerihen) bt CHI (Miao Xin Hong) 21-16, FIJ (Litia Tikoisuva) bt THA (Sue Bryant) 21-10, MAS (Siti Zalina Ahmad) bt PNG (Catherine Wimp) 21-8, PHI (Ainie Knight) bt NIU (Pauline Rex Blumsky) 21-4. Rd.5: MAS bt THA 21-12, PHI bt MAC 21-7, CAN bt AUS 21-15, PNG bt FIJ 21-13, CHI bt NIU 21-11. Rd.6: CAN bt MAC 21-11, FIJ bt CHI 21-13, PHI bt PNG 21-13, MAS bt AUS 21-15, THA bt NIU 21-7.

Current standings: MALAYSIA 18 points +76 shots, CAN 15 +41, FIJ 12 +38, PHI 12 +28, AUS 9 +18, THA 9 +13, PNG 9 -6, CHI 6 -22, NIU 0 -92, MAC 0 -94.

Sec.2: Rd.4: NZL (Jo Edwards) bt JPN (Keiko Kurohara) 21-18, HKC (Helen Cheung) bt BRU (Dayang Isah Muntol) 21-9, IND (Tania Choudhury) bt NFI (Carmen Anderson) 21-15, SAM (Repeka Seira Aluni) bt USA (Alexis Van Den Bos) 21-8. Rd.5: SIN (Tammy Tham) bt JPN 21-16, NFI bt BRU 21-6, HKC bt SAM 21-4, IND bt USA 21-7. Rd.6: USA bt JPN 16-15, IND bt BRU 21-7, NZL bt NFI 21-14, HKC bt SIN 21-3.

Current standings: INDIA 15 points +53 shots, HKC 12 +43, NZL 12 +32, SIN 12 +18, NFI 9 +21, JPN 3 -23, USA 3 -45, SAM 3 -45, BRU 3 -54.

Women’s fours:

Sec.1: Rd.4: AUS (Lynsey Clarke, Carla Krizanic, Bec Van Asch, Natasha Scott) bt PNG (Piwen Karkar, Jessica Kuli, Angela Simbinali, Melissa-Ju Carlo) 29-7, JPN (Yukie Koyama, Yoko Goda, Midori Matsuoka, Hiroko Emura) bt CHI (Zheng Fang, Liu Yuan Ying, Yanfen Chen, Song Su Zhen) 11-9, MAS (Auni Kamis, Nurul Jamil, Azlina Arshad, Nur Fidrah Noh) bt THA (Chamaipron Kotchawong, Kannika Limwanich, Palita Gangur, Nannapat Tomak) 16-10. Rd.5: AUS bt HKC (Gloria Ha, Cheryl Chan, Phyllis Wong, Angel So) 21-6, THA bt FIJ (Radhika Prasad, Loretta Kotoisuva, Doreen O’Connor, Sheryl Mar) 21-11, PNG bt JPN 20-7, Rd.6: AUS bt MAS 22-10, HKC bt PNG 15-13, JPN bt THA 24-5.

Current standings: AUSTRALIA 12 points +60 shots, HKC 12 +11, MAS 9 +13, JPN 6 -2, THA 6 -28, FIJ 4 -12, PNG 3 -32, CHI 1 -10.

Sec.2: Rd.4: CAN (Jackie Foster, Joanna Cooper, Jordan Kos, Leanne Chinery) bt SIN (Margaret Lim, Josephine Lim, May Lee, Shermeen Lim) 20-5, NZL (Wendy Jensen, Kirsten Edwards, Katelyn Inch, Val Smith) bt MAC (Hilda Tam, Ivy Chui, Pian Lai, Kitty Chan) 16-11, PHI (Sonia Bruce, Hazel Jagony, Ronalyn Greenlees, Rosita Bradborn) bt NIU (Victoria Liumaihetau, Rosie Rex, Pilena Motufoou, Joy Peyroux) 21-5, IND (Sarita Tirkey, Bongita Hazarika, Nayanmoni Saikia, Ruparani Tirkey) bt USA (Alice Birkinshaw, Melanie Vizenor, Janice Bell, Anne Nunes) 26-8. Rd.5: NFI (Shae Wilson, Vivian Bigg, Ester Sanchez, Petal Jones) bt MAC 24-8, CAN bt IND 21-9, SIN bt NIU 29-6, USA bt PHI 23-13. Rd.6: CAN bt MAC 29-4, NFI bt NIU 31-7, PHI bt IND 13-8, NZL bt USA 19-14.

Current standings: CANADA 15 points +78 shots, PHI 15 +31, NZL 15 +27, NFI 9 +33, IND 4 Sq, MAC 4 -52, SIN 3 -7, USA 3 -22, NIU 3 -88.

Men’s pairs:

Sec.1: Rd.4: HKC (Imen Tang, Tony Cheung) bt CHI (Mao Young Min, Liu Guo Qiang) 20-11, NZL (Shannon McIlroy, Gary Lawson) bt JPN (Tomoyuki Tamachi, Jun Koyama) 19-13, NFI (John Christian, Barry Wilson) bt SAM (Iva Tiatia, Avala Savaiinaea) 20-9, PHI (Hommer Mercado, Angelo Morales) bt CAN (Rob Law, Ryan Bester) 18-15. Rd.5: JPN bt FIJ (Rajnesh Prasad, David Aitcheson) 23-12, CAN bt HKC 18-15, PHI bt NFI 19-18, CHI bt SAM 20-9. Rd.6: NFI bt JPN 20-17, NZL bt CAN 15-11, CHI bt FIJ 20-18, PHI bt HKC 21-15.

Current standings: NEW ZEALAND 15 points +39 shots, NFI 12 +39, PHI 12 +6, HKC 9 +17, CAN 9 +15, JPN 6 -6, CHI 6 -28, SAM 3 -52, FIJ 0 -30.

Sec.2: Rd.4: AUS (Ray Pearse, Nathan Rice) bt NIU (Gregory Funaki, Dalton Tagelagi) 25-6, MAS (Izzat Dzulkeple, Fairul Muin) bt THA (Naret Aiangetuen, Koko Ontong) 27-9, USA (Scott Roberts, Neil Furman) bt MAC (Ricky Poon, Alvin Leung) 35-8, PNG (John Morgan, Matu Bazo) bt SIN (Matthew Ngui, Melvin Tan) 25-12. Rd.5: IND (Anand Nazary, Mirdul Borgohain) bt NIU 26-11, MAS bt USA 23-12, PNG bt MAC 22-10, THA bt SIN 19-18. Rd.6: IND bt MAC 27-7, SIN bt NIU 29-13, USA bt THA 30-8, AUS bt MAS 13-12.

Current standings: AUSTRALIA 13 points +73 shots, MAS 12 +93, IND 12 +36, PNG 12 +20, USA 9 +22, THA 7 -32, SIN 3 -5, MAC 3 -118, NIU 0 -89.

Men’s triples:

Sec.1: Rd.4: CAN (Pat Bird, Greg Wilson, Cameron Lefresne) bt MAC (Johnny Ng, Chris Chiu, Eric Li) 21-12, FIJ (Kushal Pillay, Abdul Kalim, Semesa Naiseruvati) bt THA (Patawee Montien, Sonthi Manakitpaiboon, Thanakrit Thammasarn) 22-7, MAS (Soufi Rusli, Hizlee Rais, Ijoi Redzuan) bt HKC (Adrian Yau, Lyndon Sham, James Po) 25-9, IND (Sunil Bahadur, Naveet Rathi, Dinesh Kumar) bt NFI (Teddy Evans, Matt Bigg, Ryan Dixon) 19-12. Rd.5: NZL (Mike Kernaghan, Jamie Hill, Ali Forsyth) bt MAS 15-13, CAN bt THA 25-20, FIJ bt MAC 18-15, IND bt HKC 23-9. Rd.6: IND bt MAC 27-7, NZL bt FIJ 18-14, NFI bt THA 19-16, HKC bt CAN 18-16.

Current standings: INDIA 15 points +54 shots, NZL 15 +40, CAN 12 +14, FIJ 9 +9, HKC 9 -29, MAS 6 +31, NFI 6 -7, THA 0 -52, MAC 0 -60.

Sec.2: Rd.4: AUS (Barrie Lester, Aaron Teys, Aron Sherriff) bt CHI (Meng Zhao Qian, Zhang Bao Cheng, Ye Sui Ying) 21-9, JPN (Hirokazu Mori, Hank Sato, Kenta Hasebe) bt PHI (Elmer Abatayo, Robert Guarin, Chris Dagpin) 18-14, SIN (Anthony Loh, Heng Heck Pang, Bernard Foo) bt PNG (Kenneth Ikirima, Gabriel Simeon, Freddy Koesan) 16-10, SAM (Solomona Faamaoni, Hans Junior Gabriel, Fiu Peni Asi) bt USA (Bill Brault, Aaron Zangl, Loren Dion) 16-14. Rd.5: CHI bt NIU (Bill Vakaafi Morufoou, Mark Blumsky, Stan Tafatu) 32-5, PNG bt JPN 14-13, SIN bt SAM 14-13, PHI bt USA 20-16. Rd.6: AUS bt JPN 25-10, USA bt CHI 17-12, PNG bt PHI 21-12, NIU drew SIN 14-14.

Current standings: AUSTRALIA 15 points +77 shots, PNG 12 +32, USA 9 +29, CHI 9 +5, SIN 7 -9, PHI 6 -4, JAP 6 -8, SAM 6 -35, NIU 1 -87.