Malaysia men’s singles ace Ng Tze Yong will head into the upcoming Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, boosted by achieving a career-high world ranking on the back of his Hong Kong exploits.
Now 19th, Ng made one leap to sit above China’s Weng Hong Yang after reaching the Super 500 semi-finals in Hong Kong.
The 23-year-old saw his run halted by eventual champion Jonatan Christie in three games.
As he prepares for the multi-sport Games, Ng refused to dwell too much in his loss.
“The signs are good looking, and my training is on the right track. I still have a lot to improve on my game. I lost that deciding match to him because my speed wasn't enough.
“Overall I am satisfied with how I played, but it’s a new week and I will prepare to go again,” he said.
Ng is set to feature in both the men’s team and individual events in Hangzhou.
The rest of the men’s singles team is made up of Lee Zii Jia, Leong Jun Hao and Cheam June Wei.
As for the individual event, the Asian spectacle offers rankings points equivalent to a Super 1000 event on the World Tour, with promise of rising further up the ranking ladder.
Besides reaching his first semi-finals this year, Ng will head to China in the knowledge he did well at the last multi-sports Commonwealth Games last year.
In Birmingham, he won team gold and earned a silver medal in the individual event after beating the likes of K. Srikanth and Loh Kean Yew en route to the final.
Except for Lee due to prior arrangements, the national contingent gathered for their first day centralised training on Tuesday at the Academy Badminton Malaysia.
He is set to report for training on September 21 before the team departs for Hangzhou four days later.
