Tze Yong's stock continues to rise after another title success in Europe

Ng Tze Yong is fast establishing himself as the country’s second best men’s singles shuttler behind Lee Zii Jia, after the youngster added a second title to his name this year by winning the Belgian International on Sunday.

The world number 74 was impressive in his 21-14, 21-14 victory over India’s Ajay Jayaram, clinched in only 33 minutes.

❤️?? Sincere thanks to His Excellency Dato’ Ahmad Rozian Abdul Ghani, Malaysian Ambassador to Belgium, Sarah Vanherck, President of Malaysian Association of Belgium & Luxembourg (MABL) and the Malaysian fans for the strong support at the YONEX Belgium International. pic.twitter.com/cb5XdslaG1

— BAM (@BA_Malaysia) October 31, 2021

The 21-year-old exhibited pure class throughout the tournament, where he was dominant in all but one of his matches to win in straight games.

Ng was taken to the wire in the semis against Japan’s Yusuke Onodera, but showed a combative side to his game where he battled hard to carve out a 20-22, 21-15, 23-21 win to make the final.

The Johor-born even admitted the final was as straightforward as it got, as he followed his gameplan to perfection.

“Honestly, the final was not a difficult one as my tactics were spot on, and I was feeling really good out there.

“I have been consistent here too, from the first round itself. I make it a point to do some extra stretching after matches and have my protein shakes for recovery. That has been key to my stamina and consistency,” he said.

Ng already bagged the Polish Open earlier this year and only missed out on the Czech Open title last week by a whisker after losing 25-27 in the third game against Czech Republic’s Jan Louda.

At the Sudirman Cup, he won the only match he played in, and gave Jonathan Christie a huge test in the Thomas Cup quarter-finals.

This victory is expected to bump him further up the world rankings when the world body decides to unfreeze the current standings.

On the personal front, Ng is also all smiles as he embarks on a relationship with Canadian shuttler Talia Ng after his girlfriend proudly announced the news on her social media.

Ng will next set his sights on conquering another European affair when he competes at the Irish Open (Nov 17-20).