In other words, he should stop whining.
To be quite frank with you, I interprete a man who isn't willing to be straighforward about pursuing me to be rather full of himself. Being "shy" to pursue a women is being so absorb in himself, he can't have fun, in my opinion.
Being straighforward about asking a women out is not full of himself, it's just being honest.
And don't worry about your height. Its about the whole package.