Malaysia Open, held at the National Tennis Centre, Jalan Duta KL
Nevertheless, it was a good game to watch anyway. Thank you very much Sharon! I made it a family outing, bringing mom and dad along, and also my cousin Poh with her little boy An-An. We manage to catch a Croatia vs Australia men's singles, and a men's doubles between India and Australia.
The shiny and beautiful National Tennis Centre, Jalan Duta KL.
Shiny empty seats hahaha!
As you can see, the Malaysia crowd support was sparse. The stadium itself was very comfortable, and it was roofed. It was kinda fun to watch all the outrageous 200kmph serves from the skinny players, almost all of which were aces. I do miss the older playing style though... where players relied more on strategy and did rallies that tested skills other than returning a serve. Also, these semis used a different scoring system, only needing each side to win 2 sets instead of the usual 3. Each game ended in about 40mins.
Had a catch up with old pals Sharon and David. Once again, we spoke of their affirmative to migrate to Oz. Also found out that an Australian Matriculation education does not exempt you from needing an English proficiency test like IELTS. Again, a good example of red tape without logic. Seems like Malaysia is not the only one. Did you also hear about New Zealand's example of red tape? If you are too obese, you can't apply to be a permanent resident, else you will put the country's medical care system under undue stress. I'm sure that there is a better logical explanation for the refusal of entry for the poor, overweight soul, but NZ felt it better to go with this one instead.
More pals of mine are seeking greener pastures outside of Malaysia. Some going as far as doing a complete career and training turnaround to pick up 'hot market skills'. E.g. nursing, .NET to Java because Java is hotter in Oz. I do applaud the confidence and self belief my pals have in making a drastic change. Heck, it is actually such risk takers that come out far ahead in life anyway. I do admit I am tempted to get away from Malaysia myself, and Oz does look very tempting he he he! Hate the drought though. There are some distant family members in Oz too, and of course some good friends in Melb, Perth, Sydney. Ahhh... let's do some research for shicks and giggles.
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