13/03/2026

SPORTS FRIDAY | MAR 13, 2026

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Duo on course for World Para Table Tennis Championships TWO national para table tennis athletes are now on track to qualify for the ITTF Pattaya 2026 World Para Table Tennis Championships in Thailand in November. planning participation in several international tournaments to ensure that at least four more national ath letes can collect sufficient qualifica tion points. participation in the singles event, but is also highly confident in the poten tial of the doubles event which is seen as capable of causing a surprise and contributing medals. “We don’t want to just send repre

RESULTS & STANDINGS

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: (Last 16, 1st leg) : Bayer Leverkusen 1 (Andrich 46) Arsenal 1 (Havertz 89-pen) , Bodo/Glimt 3 (Brun stad Fet 32-pen, Blomberg 45+1, Hogh 71) Sporting 0, Paris Saint-Germain 5 (Barcola 10, Dembele 40, Vitinha 74, Kvar atskhelia 86, 90+4) Chelsea 2 (Gusto 28, Fernandez 57) , Real Madrid 3 (Valverde 20, 27, 42) Manchester City 0. CHAMPIONSHIP: Birmingham 1 Queens Park Rangers 0, Norwich 2 Shef field United 1, Middlesbrough 0 Charl ton Athletic 1, Oxford United 1 Black burn 0, West Bromwich Albion 1 South ampton 1, Coventry 3 Preston North End 0. TOP 5 P W D L F A Pts Coventry 37 23 8 6 77 38 77 Boro 37 20 9 8 58 36 69 Millwall 37 20 8 9 51 41 68 Ipswich 36 18 11 7 64 38 65 Hull 37 19 6 12 59 53 63 NATIONAL HEAD COACH Peter Cklamovski has described Johor Darul Ta’zim’s (JDT) progression to the quar terfinals of the 2025/2026 AFC Champions League Elite (ACL Elite) as an “epic achievement” that reflects posi tively on Malaysian football. He said the Southern Tigers’ 3-2 aggregate victory over Japan’s Sanfrecce Hiroshima in the round of 16 underlined the club’s ability to compete with Asia’s top teams. “Epic result for JDT! Well-deserved victory over two legs. Congratulations to all. Super result for Malaysian foot ball,” he wrote on his Instagram Story . JDT, who won the first leg 3-1, advanced to the last eight despite los ing 1-0 in the return leg of the round-of 16 tie at Edion Peace Wing Hiroshima yesterday, making it the best perform ance by a Malaysian club since the tour nament was rebranded in 2023. Joining JDT as representatives from the East Zone are Thailand’s Buriram United and two other Japanese clubs – FC Machida Zelvia and Vissel Kobe. All four teams now await the out come of the West Zone ties to deter mine their respective opponents in the THE Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) has urged the public to exercise caution and verify the legitimacy of training programmes following reports of clubs falsely claiming affiliation with the national body. In a statement today, BAM advised parents to confirm any claims of asso ciation before enrolling their children or making any payments to these entities. “BAM has become aware of several badminton training programmes and clubs falsely claiming or implying affilia tion with BAM. “BAM wishes to emphasise that these programmes and clubs are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or author ised by BAM,” the statement read. Meanwhile BAM also warns that any party found misrepresenting an affilia tion with BAM or using BAM’s logo with out authorisation is requested to imme diately cease such claims or use. “BAM takes the misuse of its name and reputation seriously and reserves the right to take appropriate action where necessary. For verification of official BAM pro grammes, please refer to BAM’s official communication channels. SHORTS Cklamovski hails ‘ epic achievement’ next stage of the competition. False affiliation warning from BAM

Taiwan, in addition to taking on the challenge at the 2026 Aichi Nagoya Asian Para Games in Japan. Apart from the competitive tour nament, the national team also plans to undergo a long-term training camp in Thailand starting next June. “Thailand was chosen because they have a special training center for para athletes with fully equipped facilities. “In fact, there are also many world class athletes there who can provide useful exposure to our players,“ he said. – Bernama

“So far, Gloria and Jennatul are in the best position based on world rankings. Our focus now is to help four other athletes so that they can also participate,“ Syarizal Abdul told Bernama after the Working Committee Meeting in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur yesterday. Syarizal explained that the national squad is not only pursuing

National para table tennis team manager Dr. Syarizal Abdul Rahim said Gloria Gracia Wong Sze and Jennatul Fahmi Ahmad Jennah are currently in the world top 20 and are in a comfortable position to confirm their slots for the prestigious tourna ment. He said Table Tennis Association of Malaysia (TTAM) is currently actively

sentatives for the singles event. We know that the national team’s strength in the doubles event is also very prominent and capable of pro viding a tough challenge,“ he said. Commenting on the preparation plan, Syarizal said the national squad is scheduled to participate in interna tional tournaments in China and

JDT rewrite history Johor down Sanfrecce Hiroshima to book spot in ACLE quarterfinals

J OHOR DARUL TA’ZIM (JDT) created their own piece of history after advancing to the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League Elite (ACLE) 2025/26 following a 3-2 aggregate victory over Sanfrecce Hiroshima on Wednesday night. This marks the best achievement by a Malaysian club since the tournament was rebranded in 2023. Earlier, the second-leg Round of 16 match of the ACLE at Edion Peace Wing Stadium in Hiroshima

However, the home side were awarded a penalty towards the end of the match after the ball struck JDT midfielder Nene. The opportunity was not wasted by Hiroshima as Kosuke Kinoshita calmly converted the penalty to hand the hosts a 1-0 win. However, the victory was not enough to see Hiroshima advance to the quarterfinals after losing 3-2 on aggregate. “It was a difficult game. We spoke about the dan ger they (Sanfrecce) have from set-pieces and today they scored again in that situation,” said JDT head coach Xisco Munoz. “But the most important thing is that the team continued with the same intensity, power and belief in what we are doing. “We have made history – a Malaysian club is reaching the knockout stage, which is something very positive. There are still things we can improve, but I’m very happy, the club showed it can compete at a high level. “I’m also very happy for the players and the staff because everyone has given everything. It has been a long and demanding season with a lot of travel and we worked very hard to reach this moment.” Hiroshima head coach Bartosch Gaul expressed his disappointment after seeing his side fall short. “I feel angry and disappointed because we invested a lot into this tie,” said Gaul. “The first leg was already a big challenge and we knew (JDT) coming here would be difficult as well. “We stayed focused, tried to score, delivered crosses and defended well and I think we created some good situations. “Credit to our opponents because they defended their box very well with their big, strong players, which made things difficult for us. “Overall we still created good chances. I want to compliment my team. “We fought and believed until the end and even if it wasn’t enough today, I’m sure it will be in the future.” – Bernama/Agencies

ended 1-0 in favour of the home side. The first half saw the hosts repeatedly attacking JDT’s defence in search of a goal to reduce the defi cit. However, the resilience of JDT’s defence ensured that no goals were scored, with the first half ending goalless. Entering the second half, Hiroshima continued to struggle to find a goal as their attacks were fre quently thwarted by the JDT defence.

JDT’s Guilherme (left) and J. Silva celebtrate after advancing to the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League Elite despite a 1-0 defeat to Sanfrecce in the second leg yesterday. – @OfficialJohor/X

KBS has Pocket Rocketman’s back: Mohammed Taufiq

THE Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS) will continue to support national track cycling champion Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang even though the athlete has turned profes sional. Youth and Sports Minister Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari said the support and assistance extended to the cyclist nicknamed “The Pocket Rocketman”includes health and train ing. “We will always be in touch with him to ensure all assistance and all forms of facilities we can provide to ensure he continues to make Malaysia proud,” he said. Mohammed Taufiq told reporters after launching the KBS Esports Fund (DEK) 2026 and the Malaysia Esports Accelerator Programme (MEAP) 2026 in Puchong yesterday. He was also impressed by the energetic cycling displayed by the

two-time Olympic medalist when he won the men’s keirin event at the International Cycling Union (UCI) Track Cycling World Cup 2026 in Perth, Australia, recently. Apart from winning the keirin event, Mohd Azizulhasni also added another medal collection from Perth by winning the men’s sprint bronze. The 38-year-old cyclist from Terengganu decided to leave the national track cycling squad and con tinue his career by moving profes sional in April last year. At the same event, Mohammed Taufiq also assured that KBS will con tinue to strengthen the development of national football despite the cur rent crisis affecting the sport in the country. He said that the strengthening includes developing national football at the grassroots level through the National Football Development

The seven players involved are Hector Hevel, Imanol Machuca, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal and Gabriel Palmero. Last week, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) partially accepted the appeal of the seven players against the punishment imposed by The International Federation of Association Football (Fifa) over the fal sification of naturalisation and eligi bility documents. In an operative decision issued without detailed reasons, CAS ruled that the seven players remain sus pended for 12 months. However, the ban now only applies to official matches and not all football-related activities. CAS also upheld the CHF350,000 (RM1.8 million) fine imposed on FAM and described the punishment as fair and proportionate. – Bernama

Programme (NFDP). Mohammed Taufiq said he would also launch several programmes under the NFDP in the near future after holding discussions with Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) secretary-general Datuk Noor Azman Rahman, recently. “We are strengthening the NFDP programme to ensure that more new talents can be unearthed. “The reason for me is that the most important thing is for us to continue moving forward, to ensure that our football does not lag far behind,” he said Mohammed Taufiq hopes that all Malaysians, especially football fans, will not lose heart and continue to support the development of national football. National football is currently fac ing the issue of forged naturalisation documents and qualifications of seven national heritage players.