10/04/2025

SPORTS THURSDAY | APR 10, 2025

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Sze Fei–Nur Izzuddin cruise into round two

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE (Quarterfinals, 1st leg) : Arsenal 3 (Rice 58, 70, Merino 75) Real Madrid 0, Bayern Munich 1 (Muller 85) Inter Milan 2 (Martinez 38, Frattesi 88) . ENGLISH CHAMPIONSHIP: Blackburn 2 Sheffield Wednesday 2, Bristol City 2 West Bromwich Albion 1, Derby 0 Burn ley 0, Middlesbrough 0 Leeds 1, Norwich 0 Sunderland 0, Preston 2 Cardiff 2, Shef field United 0 Millwall 1, Stoke 1 Luton 1, Watford 1 Hull 0. TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Leeds 41 24 13 4 80 28 85 Burnley 41 23 16 2 55 12 85 Sheff Utd 41 26 7 8 56 31 83 Sunderland 41 21 13 7 57 37 76 Bristol City 41 16 15 10 53 44 63 Mid’boro 41 17 9 15 61 50 60 RESULTS & STANDINGS MALAYSIA’S athletics coaching lineup could soon be bolstered by the arrival of international coaches with a proven track record of producing Olympic champions, said Malaysia Athletics (MA) technical director Robert J Ballard. He said the national athletics governing body has shortlisted several potential candidates to strengthen the national squad and athlete development programme, but the final decision lies with the National Sports Council (MSC). “The names we suggested have either coached or produced Olympic gold medallists. We’re looking at a mix of foreign and local coaches,” Ballard told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. “It’s not just just for sprint events – we’re working across several disciplines. These changes take time, and we also need to secure the necessary funding. Once everything is finalised, we’ll make an official announcement.” Yesterday, MA confirmed that a new coaching lineup for the national athletics squad is expected to be announced soon. Record number of teams for Penang 7’s THE 24th PSC International Football 7’s Tournament is set to make an exciting return this year, with a record 70 local and international clubs participating. Organised by the Penang Sports Club (PSC) football section, the annual tournament will be held this weekend at the PSC field, featuring three categories, namely Veterans, Masters and Grandmasters. Organising chairman A. Balasubramaniam said over 60% of the participating teams will be from overseas and the rest from various states across Malaysia. “There are 18 teams confirmed for the Veterans category, 28 for the Masters and 24 for the Grandmasters. Among the foreign teams are those from Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, the Maldives and Brunei. “In addition, there will be strong representation from Malaysian teams coming from across the country – Penang, Kedah, Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak,” he told a press conference in George Town yesterday. “For football enthusiasts, this will be a perfect opportunity to catch a glimpse of yesteryear international stars from Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, the Maldives, Australia, Vietnam, Hong Kong and China,” he added. BRIEFS M’sia eye Olympic-calibre coaches

MALAYSIA’S top men’s doubles pair, Goh Sze Fei– Nur Izzuddin Mohd Rumsani, advanced to the second round of the 2025 Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) in Ningbo, China, yesterday. The tournament’s top seeds beat Japan’s Takuro Hoki–Yugo Kobayashi 21-18, 21-16. Another Malaysian men’s pair, Man Wei Chong– Tee Kai Wun, also progressed after defeating Hong Kong’s Law Cheuk Him–Yeung Shing Choi 21-14, 21 12. Earlier, professional women’s singles player Goh Jin Wei also advanced to the second round after Huge boost for Xin Ying M ALAYSIA’S Yee Xin Ying (pic) pulled off a major upset to book her place in the semifinals of the U-23 World Championships after defeat ing second seed Malak Khafagy of Egypt yester day. The inaugural edition of the championships, taking place at the DHA Creek Club, Karachi, features an array of the world’s top squash talent aged 22 and under. In front of a lively crowd, world No. 82 Xin Ying went in as clear underdog against the world No. 31, but belied the 51-place difference in the world rankings with a spirited opening game as she pressed Malak hard. Malak, 20, was able to edge ahead as she took the opener 11-9, only to be pegged back 8 11 in game two. Xin Ying kept the momentum in game three, capitalising on mistakes from the frustrated Malak to move ahead for the first time with an 11-9 win, before Malak dragged herself level with an 11-7 game four win. In a fractious fifth game, Malak and Xin Ying collided frequently as the pair wrestled for control of the court. Xin Ying looked to have secured a famous upset when she earned four match points at 10 6, only for Malak to dig in to save three to move within a point of forcing a tie break. In a nerve-shredder finale, Malak played a National squash queen books spot in U-23 World C’ships semifinals

In Tuesday nights matches, mixed doubles professional pair Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie lived up to expectations when they edged India’s Sathish Kumar Karunakaran-Aadya Variyath 21-18, 21-19 to march into the second round. There was also good news for another Malaysian mixed doubles pair of Yap Roy King-Valeree Siow when they overcame India’s Rohan Kapoor-Gaddhe Ruthvika Shivani 18-21, 21-17, 21-17 to make the second round. Two Malaysian mixed doubles pairs – Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin and Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sin – suffered an early exit. Pang Ron-Su Yin lost 21-15, 12-21, 11-21 to India’s Dhruv Kapila-Tanisha Crasto while Tien Ci-Chiew Sin went down 16-21, 14-21 to Japan’s Yuichi Shimogami-Sayaka Hobara. – Bernama

defeating Taiwan’s Sung Shuo Yun 21-16, 21-13 in 41 minutes. The former world junior champion will meet Thailand’s Supanida Katethong in the next round. Fellow Malaysian professional, women’s singles player Wong Ling Ching, making her debut in the tournament, fell in the first round after losing to Indonesia’s Komang Ayu Cahya Dewi 17-21, 21-16, 17-21. National men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao was also shown the exit after losing to Taiwan’s Lin Chun Yi 11-21, 19-21.

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loose shot back towards herself, with Xin Ying crashing into her opponent as she charged after the ball. To Xin Ying’s delight and Malak’s unbridled fury, a stroke decision was given in the Malaysia’s favour to bring an enthralling match to a close and send the 21-year-old into the last four. “She’s a very good player and this win is definitely such a boost of confidence for me!” Xin Ying admitted afterwards. The other women’s semifinal will between Egyptian top seed Fayrouz Aboelkheir and Malaysia’s Aira Azman, after Fayrouz downed a determined Tse Toby of Hong Kong 3-1, and Aira beating Tse’s compatriot Fung Heylie 3-0. In the men’s draw, Pakistan’s Hamza Khan went down in a hard-fought defeat to Malaysia’s Ameeshenraj Chandaran but Noor Zaman kept the home flag flying with a convincing win over France’s Melvil Scianimanico. Noor will take on Ameeshenraj in the last four after the Malaysian took down 2023 World Junior Champion Hamza, fighting his way to a 3-1 win. The other men’s semifinal will be an all-Egyptian affair between top seed Ibrahim Elkabbani and Kareem El Torkey, with Ibrahim taking down 2022 World Junior Champion Rowan Damming of the Netherlands and Kareem defeating Swiss David Bernet in straight games. – World Squash

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Sri Pahang turn it around to thrash Kedah SRI PAHANG FC’S transformation in the second half proved to be the turning point for the team as they thrashed Kedah Darul Aman FC 6-0 in their Super League clash at the Temerloh Municipal Council Stadium on Tuesday night. Head coach Fandi Ahmad said he was initially concerned about his side’s first-half performance, as they came under pressure and committed a few unforced errors. changes, including several substitutions after the break. “We brought in fresh players such as Nor Azam Azih and Mohamad Saiful Jamaluddin after noticing a drop in performance in those positions. “We also introduced Manuel Federico Hidalgo to strengthen the attack, which contributed to this resounding win,” he said. He hoped the win would also inspire his players to give a serious challenge to Johor Darul Ta’zim in the upcoming Malaysia Cup.

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“The first half was quite terrifying, and had the opponents scored, the result could have been very different. “But in the second half, Sri Pahang improved – our players were more focused, the attacking line was sharp, and the passing was much better,” he said at a post-match press conference. The former Singapore international said the positive shift was also influenced by his tactical

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Kedah Darul Aman head coach Victor Andrag said the outcome might have been different had his players converted a few golden opportunities in the first half. “In the second half, I noticed that many of my players were already tired, but they didn’t give up,” he said. – Bernama

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