Squash Racquets Association of Malaysia’s (SRAM) President Huang Ying How believes Nicol David’s recent slump doesn’t indicate that she’s going through a period of decline.
The Malaysian star lost her world number one spot to Raneem El Weilely earlier this week, having been on top for nine years. But Ying How sees no reason to panic.
“Honestly, I am not worried with Nicol’s performance. I believe poor performance wasn’t why she fell one spot on the world rankings,” she told Utusan.
“She did not join too many competitions due to her commitment in the campaign that’s pushing to make Squash an Olympic sport. She is very committed in that aspect.”
“Nicol was still No. 1 last July, but there was no tournament in August for her to join. Lack of tournament participation led to her downfall, but take nothing away from Raneem, who has done wel this year.
She believes Nicol will be back to claim her place from Raneem as soon as her attention is switched back to competing in tournaments.
“I believe as soon her focus is back on tournaments, she will prove that she is still the world’s best player,” Ying How added.
Nicol dropped to the second spot for the time since August 2006 after only collecting 2,853 points, 126 points behind Raneem El Weleily who has collected 2,979 points.
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