18/05/2025

SPORTS 15 ON SUNDAY MAY 18, 2025

Boys on track Aaron-Wooi Yik advance to Thailand Open final

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE: Aston Villa 2 (Konsa 59, Kamara 73) Totten ham 0, Chelsea 1 (Cucurella 71) Manchester United 0. TOP 5 P W D L F A Pts Liverpool 36 25 8 3 83 37 83 Arsenal 36 18 14 4 66 33 68 Newcastle 36 20 6 10 68 45 66 Chelsea 37 19 9 9 63 43 66 Aston Villa 37 19 9 9 58 49 66 RESULTS & STANDINGS The national team’s best-ever performance in the tournament was a third-place finish in the 1983 edi tion, held in Thailand. – Bernama Cornelli eyes friendlies as key prep for Malayan Tigress NEW Malayan Tigress head coach Joel Cornelli has described the two upcoming international football friendlies against Bhutan and Hong Kong, and two matches against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as ideal preparations for the team ahead of his first major task at the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Cornelli said the upcoming fix tures will be crucial for him to assess the capabilities of his squad and implement his footballing philoso phy before heading to Tajikistan in June. “This will be a very important week of training to get to know the players and to start implementing my philosophy and game model with the team,” he told reporters at the opening ceremony of the Women’s League qualifying round at the PKNS Field in Petaling Jaya yes terday. “Bhutan and Hong Kong are not in our qualifying group, but it is very important to see the level of our team at this moment because this is the only available match window.” The national team are set to take part in the Tier 1 Tri-Nation International Series in Thimphu, Bhutan, facing Bhutan (May 31) and Hong Kong ( June 4), before travel ling to the UAE for two more warm up matches on June 20 and 22. Cornelli said the friendlies would allow him to address weaknesses in the squad, particularly in attacking and finishing. “I’ve only seen the girls in video footage matches against Indonesia, Cambodia in August, and Saudi Arabia, and we didn’t score many goals. “Of course, we need to work on that during these friendly matches so I can identify the best positions for the players and better understand where our weaknesses lie,” he said. For the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers, Malaysia have been placed in a challenging Group H, alongside three-time champions North Korea. Malaysia will also meet Palestine and Tajikistan, who will host the qualifiers from June 23 to July 5. Only the group champions will advance to the finals, which will take place in Australia from March 1 to 21 next year. Malaysia last qualified for the Women’s Asian Cup in 1995 when they hosted the tournament.

maintain belief in each other. Winning or losing comes second to doing our best,“ he said. He also expressed hope that they would maintain their positive momentum in today’s match, regardless of their opponent. Aaron also noted that it is encouraging to see the rise of many junior pairs, such as Wan Arif-Roy King, Man Wei Chong-Kai Wun Tee, and Choong Hon Jian Muhammad Haikal, participating in major tournaments. “The juniors are improving, and we are getting more and more men’s doubles pairs in major tournaments, which is a healthy sign for the country,” he said. The last Malaysian men’s doubles pair to win the Thailand Open title were Chan Peng Soon-Lim Khim Wah in 2009. – Bernama

MALAYSIA’S national men’s doubles pair and reigning Asian men’s doubles champions, Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, are on track for their second title of the year after advancing to the Thailand Open final yesterday. The second seeds needed just 38 minutes to overcome home favourites and fifth seeds, Kittinupong Kedren Dechapol Puavaranukroh of Thailand, 21-17, 21-13 in the semifinal. This marks the Malaysian pair’s second Thailand Open final, having finished as runners-up in 2020. Soh said they were not focusing on the prospect of consecutive titles this year, instead keeping their attention on the next match. “We have been through many finals in tournaments, experiencing both success and failure. So, we do not want to think too much about winning back

to-back titles this year. “We will continue to learn from our coaches and improve our game to avoid putting too much pressure on ourselves. “Tomorrow’s (today’s) final is just another match for us to further develop our skills,” he told Bernama after their match at the Nimibutr Stadium today. Despite the strong support for Kittinupong-Dechapol from the home crowd, Aaron-Soh controlled the first game, winning 21-17, and sealed the match in straight sets with a commanding 21-13 victory. Aaron noted that their game plan and court control had improved since the first round of the tournament, during which they had played a late match past midnight. “Our performance has been improving with each match we play. We aim to focus on what we need to do and

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Fans in Asia important, says United great Giggs

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Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs received a jersey from ProEvents CEO Julian Kam (left) after a press conference on the Maybank Challenge Cup. – BERNAMAPIC

BY IKHWAN ZULKAFLEE newsdesk@thesundaily.com

just how big the support is around the world. “So to see that, that could give them a boost going into next season,” he said. The legendary winger played in Malaysia in 2001 and 2009 during United’s pre-sea son tour and enjoyed his experience. “I mean, personally, I’ve been and played in these games before and know how spe cial it is for the opposition, and for the fans (in Malaysia). “To be able to watch your heroes playing live on the pitch is always better than see ing them on television. “It’s a memory that no one can ever take away from you and if you’re fortunate to get an autograph or a selfie with these players, it’s amazing and something that will stay with you forever. “So, yeah, it’s really special and I think it’s also a thank you for all the support. Especially at this time when the club maybe isn’t winning Leagues and doing so well,” he added. Giggs is in Malaysia for two days to pro mote the 2025 Maybank Challenge Cup.

MANCHESTER UNITED legend Ryan Giggs said that playing in front of a full crowd at Bukit Jalil National Stadium is an experience that has stayed with him. Speaking to the press ahead of the 2025 Maybank Challenge Cup where the Red Devil’s will take on the Asean All-Stars at the National Stadium on May 28, Giggs said that this is an opportunity for the Red Devil’s stars to connect with their fanbase in Asia. He added that playing in Malaysia is also an opportunity to demonstrate to United’s current batch of youngsters of how big their fanbase is outside of Manchester. “I can only speak from my own experi ence playing in front of a huge crowd and coming to a different part of the world play ing against different players,” Giggs told a press conference held at Crowne Plaza Hotel yesterday. “Some of these players may not have come to this part of the world before and see just how big Manchester United is and

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