Fadilah rise continues with African crown

Fadilah Shamika’s rise to the continental summit of badminton has been rapid.

She announced herself on the continent in December last year when she won gold at the All Africa Junior Championships in Mauritius.

She was consequently considered the underdog against the more experienced Johanita Scholtz when the two met in the women's singles final as the All African Badminton Championships wrapped up in South Africa this week.

The South African is ranked fourth on the continent and is 36 places ahead of the 225th ranked Fadilah in World Rankings.

And all indicators pointed at another Scholtz win when the South African won the opening set 14-21.

Fadilah however fought back to win the subsequent sets 21-14, 21-16 after 37 minutes and become the county’s first champion at the event.

“I decided to play calm and decided to play the shots that I could and it worked for me. I didn’t struggle much because I decided to think and play not to just play the shots anyhow and make the rallies but to place it and get points and it worked for me,” Fadilah said of her victory.

“The victory helped me prove myself and show everyone that no matter your age you can still work hard and achieve anything and it gave me a big boost for the 2024 Olympics,” the 18 year old said of her victory.

The win also turned out to be sweet revenge for Shamilah who lost in straight sets to Scholtz 21-14, 21-10 in the semifinals of the Uganda International in 2021 to settle for bronze.

The year 2021 also saw her become the best Ugandan performer at the All Africa Senior Championship the country hosted at Lugogo after winning bronze in the singles and doubles.

There were also bronze medals for Brian Kasirye, in the men’s singles, Husina Kobugabe in the women's singles while Kobugabe and Janet Mbabazi won bronze in women’s doubles. 

All African Badminton Championships

Women’s singles final

Fadilah Shamika 14-21 21-14, 21-16 Johanita Scholtz