22/02/2026

theSun on Sunday FEB 22, 2026

SPORTS 15

Potential trump card

SHORTS

RESULTS & STANDINGS

Jin Wei could play important role in strengthening Uber lineup: Jonassen

LA LIGA: Athletic Bilbao 2 (Guruzeta 64, 89-pen) Elche 1 (Silva 69-pen) . TOP 4 P W D L F A Pts Real Madrid 24 19 3 2 53 19 60 Barcelona 24 19 1 4 64 25 58 Villarreal 24 15 3 6 45 26 48 Atleti 24 13 6 5 38 21 45 SERIE A: Sassuolo 3 (Pinamonte 40, Berardi 44, 62) Verona 0. TOP 4 P W D L F A Pts Inter Milan 25 20 1 4 60 21 61 AC Milan 25 15 9 1 41 19 54 Napoli 25 15 5 5 38 25 50 Roma 25 15 2 8 31 16 47 LIGUE 1: Brest 2 (Ajorque 10, 29) Marseille 0. TOP 4 P W D L F A Pts Lens 22 17 1 4 42 17 52 Paris SG 22 16 3 3 49 19 51 Lyon 22 14 3 5 36 20 45 Marseille 23 12 4 7 48 31 40 ENGLISH CHAMPIONSHIP: Blackburn 1 Preston 0. TOP 4 P W D L F A Pts Coventry 32 18 8 6 66 36 62 Boro 32 18 7 7 50 33 61 Millwall 32 16 8 8 41 37 56 Ipswich 30 15 9 6 51 29 54

RACHEL FALLS AGAIN TO KENNEDY National women’s squash player Rachel Arnold’s hopes of reaching the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Gaynor Cup 2026 were dashed after she lost to England’s top seed Georgina Kennedy yester day. In the match held at the Cincinnati Country Club, the world No. 24 had to settle for a straight-sets defeat, going down 5-11, 4-11, 4-11 in 24 minutes. It was Rachel’s third con secutive defeat to Kennedy, having last met at the Silicon Valley Open in October. The result also meant that no Malaysian representatives advanced to the semifinals, with Rachel being the only national player to reach the quarterfinals. Rachel stormed into the quarterfinals after brushing aside Menna Hamed on Thursday after receiving a first-round bye. The world No. 24 needed just 22 minutes to dispatch the world No. 53 Egyptian 11 3, 11-7, 11-4 in a dominant dis play but was no match for Kennedy yesterday. HOME COMFORT FOR RHINOS AGAINST JDT Despite facing several con straints in terms of player injuries, Sabah FC remains optimistic ahead of the Super League clash against Johor Darul Ta’zim FC (JDT) at the Likas Stadium in Kota Kinabalu today. Sabah FC acting head coach Alto Linus is optimistic that the advantage of playing at home will give the Rhinos squad an extra boost of moti vation to chase positive results. He said four Sabah FC players, namely Miguel Cifuentes, Gabriel Peres, Duje Ljubic and Shahrol Nizam Abd Rahman, are unable to play due to injuries, while Kervens Belfort and Chris-Marlon Ondong-Mba are not yet at their best fit ness level. “Cifuentes has been con firmed to be out for about two weeks after suffering a broken leg during the first round match against PDRM FC in the MFL Challenge Cup. “Gabriel is still in the recovery phase, and Duje has not yet reached his opti mum fitness level and will continue to be monitored from time to time. “The coaching staff will make a final assessment before the match day to determine their readiness to be fielded,” Alto said in a statement today. At the same time, Sabah FC are hoping for the pres ence of loyal fans to fill the Likas Stadium to provide strong support to the team in their pursuit of a positive result against JDT.

PROFESSIONAL women’s singles shuttler Goh Jin Wei has been considered for Malaysia’s Uber Cup squad to strengthen the team’s depth and competitiveness. National singles coaching director Kenneth Jonassen said Jin Wei’s recent per formance, particularly her strong fighting display at the Thailand Masters where she finished runner-up, showed that she has returned to a high level. He said Jin Wei’s inclusion was also based on her experience in previous team competi tions, including her participation in last year’s Sudirman Cup. “Of course I want a balanced team where we potentially can have three women’s sin gles at almost the same level, which is quite unique. “It makes it a very competitive side, maybe not against the very top team, but against everybody else,” he said when met in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. He also noted that Jin Wei, currently ranked as Malaysia’s third women’s singles player, could play an important role in strengthening the team’s lineup. “As a third singles player, she can play an interesting role and give more depth to the team. She is also an experienced player who has competed in several team events before,” he said. However, Jonassen said the final decision on Jin Wei’s participation rests with the player herself. Yesterday, Jin Wei along with professional shuttlers Lee Zii Jia and his coach, Liew Darren held an hour-long meeting with Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) Performance Committee chairman Datuk

Seri Lee Chong Wei regarding their partici pation in the Thomas and Uber Cup Finals from Apr 24-May 3. Chong Wei expressed his support and optimism that Jin Wei can strengthen the team if she is fielded as third singles. According to Chong Wei, the player’s cur rent ranking and strength make her a suit able choice to fill the slot in the team event. “I think Jin Wei is ranked third or as third singles. Maybe she is stronger if she plays as third singles. “I respect whatever the coach chooses and we will support the decision,” he said. The national badminton legend also stressed that the current priority is to ensure the team is in the best condition to face the challenges of the Uber Cup. In addition, he believes that Jin Wei’s experience and fighting spirit can give the national squad an additional advantage, especially in matches that require mental and tactical endurance. “We will give full support to the players and coaching staff. What is important is the strength of the team as a whole,” he said. Looking at the current situation, the national women’s team squad certainly needs the support of experienced players to bring Malaysia’s challenge to the highest stage. Currently, the world No. 2 doubles, Pearly Tan-M Thinaah, are the country’s main sup port while hoping that others can contribute points to advance further. In the last edition, Malaysia failed to advance to the knockout round after only finishing third in Group B. – Bernama/Agencies

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21/02/2026

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every player showing consis tent improvement. He noted that the 7-Nation Invitational Lawn Bowls Championship, which con cluded last Wednesday, saw several surprising results, including Nor Farah Ain Abdullah’s victory over a world champion, which he described as a positive development for the national squad. “Selection is not based on a single tournament; instead, we will evaluate their consistency from one competition to another,” he said. The Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games will take place from July 23 to Aug 2. – Bernama

this May, with performance in these two upcoming tourna ments serving as key selection criteria for Glasgow. “For now, 12 players com prising six men and six women from the podium program will be sent to the test series. However, only three men and three women will be selected for the final squad to the Commonwealth Games,” he told Bernama. He said this after attending a working committee meeting at the National Sports Council (NSC) in Bukit Jalil on Friday. Commenting on the current competition among players, Awalan described it as increas ingly intense and healthy, with

THE Malaysian Lawn Bowls Federation (MLBF) is using two major tournaments – the Asian Lawn Bowls Championship in New Delhi and a series of test matches ahead of the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games this April – as the selection platform for the best athletes to represent the country at the prestigious games. PLBM President Datuk Awalan Abdul Aziz (pic) said the governing body has not yet finalised the lineup of players, as all players have shown impressive performances in previous championships. According to him, PLBM has submitted a long list of players and will refine it to a shortlist

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