24/04/2026

SPORTS FRIDAY | APR 24, 2026

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Buakaw eyes lasting legacy in Malaysia

SHORTS NSC rejects allegations

AMID the rise and fall of fighters within a short period, Muay Thai legend Buakaw Banchamek has proven that endurance, discipline and sacrifice are the keys to staying relevant in the combat sport. Set to make his debut in Malaysia at the Muay Thai TFight All Star tournament at the Titiwangsa Stadium today, Buakaw admits that not all fighters can sustain a long career in a competitive arena like Muay Thai. The 44-year-old global Muay Thai icon said that while many fighters come and go, his focus is always on building a long-term legacy in the sport.“For me, Muay Thai is something I really love. I like watching (fights) and competing, and that’s

experience against various fighting styles allows him to adapt better. The TFight All Star event will also feature Malaysian fighters, including Umar Al-Matin, Mohd Rafi Abdul Manaf, better known as Mat Ropi, and Hasril Nazmi, also known as Nazmie Dancing Boy. TFight founder Shamsueffendi Mohammad said the event aims to showcase high-level com petition in Malaysia, as well as highlight local tal ent. He said the response from fans so far has been very encouraging and has had a positive impact on the Muay Thai ecosystem and tourism. – Bernama

why I keep learning, training and ensuring my body is always at its best,” he told Bernama through a translator when met after attending a dinner event on Wednesday. He added that the discipline to always be pre pared every time he steps into the ring is also a key factor in maintaining consistent performance. “Every time I step into the ring, I must be pre pared. If not, I won’t feel confident to fight,” he said, adding that continuous support from fans is a source of motivation for him to remain active in the sport. Meanwhile, commenting on his prepa rations to face Chinese opponent Meng Gao Feng in the TFight All Star main bout, Buakaw said his

THE National Sports Council (NSC) has denied the involvement of its director-general, Jefri Ngadirin, in any programme or activity run by a badminton academy that allegedly offered programme participation while demanding a large amount of payment. The NSC said that Jefri’s name and photo graph had been misused by irresponsible par ties who linked him to the programme. According to the NSC, neither it nor Jefri has any connection, involvement or relation ship with the programme or activity. “The NSC has never appointed, authorised or recognised any individual or group to use the NSC name, identity or image for the pur pose of collecting payments for any sports activity. “The NSC views this misuse seriously, and a police report has been lodged to enable a thorough investigation. “The NSC will not hesitate to take strict action, including legal action, against any party found to be involved in such fraudulent activities in order to protect NSC’s interests and reputation,” it said in a statement yester day. Meanwhile, the NSC also advised the pub lic to check the authenticity of information related to the agency through its official chan nels and not to make any payments to any party claiming to represent NSC without verifi cation through official channels. Sanya welcomes Asia THE 6th Asian Beach Games opened on Wednesday evening in China’s tropical resort city of Sanya, with the opening ceremony held at the seaside Yasha Park. Chinese State Councilor Shen Yiqin declared the Games open after 45 delegations marched in for the continental Games, which had previously been scheduled to be held in 2020. The Games marks the first time Hainan has hosted a continental-level beach sports event. Scheduled from April 22 to 30, the Games features 14 sports, 15 disciplines and 62 events. It is the second time that China has hosted the Asian Beach Games, after the 2012 edition in Haiyang, Shandong Province. China has sent a delegation of 255 mem bers, including 171 athletes, competing in 13 sports and 60 events, marking the country’s highest participation in Asian Beach Games history. No change in ticket prices: MFL THE Malaysian Football League (MFL) yester day announced that ticket prices for the Malaysia Cup 2025/26 final between Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) and Kuching City FC at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on May 23 will remain unchanged from last season. MFL Chief Executive Officer Mohd Shazli Shaik Mohd said that despite facing rising organisational costs, the league has main tained ticket prices across four main catego ries offered to supporters of both teams. “The ticket pricing structure remains the same as before, starting at RM50 and RM70 for General Admission (GA50 & GA70). In addition, Premium tickets are priced at RM150, while VIP Grandstand tickets are set at RM200. “With the early announcement of ticket prices, we hope supporters of JDT and Kuching City FC can make early preparations in planning their journey to the National Stadium to show strong support for their respective teams,” he said in a statement yes terday. Meanwhile, Mohd Shazli said ticket sales will be fully managed by both finalist teams, similar to previous arrangements. Supporters can obtain further information on ticket purchases through official announcements to be made by JDT and Kuching City FC soon.

RESULTS & STANDINGS

Chelsea circus hits new low

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE: Bourne mouth 2 (Kroupi 60, Rayan 85) Leeds 2 (Hill 68-og, Longstaff 90+7) , Burnley 0 Manchester City 1 (Haaland 5) . P W D L F A Pts Man City 33 21 7 5 66 29 70 Arsenal 33 21 7 5 63 26 70 Man Utd 33 16 10 7 58 45 58 Aston Villa 33 17 7 9 47 41 58 Liverpool 33 16 7 10 54 43 55 Brighton 34 13 11 10 48 39 50 Bournemouth 34 11 16 7 52 52 49 Chelsea 34 13 9 12 53 45 48 Brentford 33 13 9 11 48 44 48 Everton 33 13 8 12 40 39 47 Sunderland 33 12 10 11 36 40 46 Fulham 33 13 6 14 43 46 45 Crystal Palace 32 11 10 11 35 36 43 Newcastle 33 12 6 15 46 49 42 Leeds 34 9 13 12 44 51 40 Nottm Forest 33 9 9 15 36 45 36 West Ham 33 8 9 16 40 57 33 Tottenham 33 7 10 16 42 53 31 Burnley 34 4 8 22 34 68 20 Wolves 33 3 8 22 24 61 17 CHAMPIONSHIP: Middlesbrough 1 Sheffield Wednesday 0, Birmingham City 2 Preston North End 1, Charlton Athletic 1 Ipswich Town 2, Sheffield United 1 Blackburn Rovers 3. TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Coventry 44 26 11 7 90 44 89 Ipswich 43 22 13 8 75 45 79 Millwall 44 23 10 11 61 48 79 Southampton 44 21 13 10 77 53 76 Middlesbrough 44 21 13 10 65 44 76 Wrexham 44 19 13 12 66 60 70 LA LIGA: Elche 3 (Affengruber 18, Silva 33-pen, 75) Atletico Madrid 2 (Gonzalez 10, 36) , Real Sociedad 0 Getafe 1 (Gorrotxategi 29-og) , Barcelona 1 (Yamal 40-pen) Celta Vigo 0. TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Barcelona 32 27 1 4 85 30 82 Real Madrid 32 23 4 5 67 30 73 Villarreal 31 19 4 8 56 36 61 Atletico 32 17 6 9 53 35 57 Real Betis 32 12 13 7 48 40 49 Getafe 32 13 5 14 28 32 44 ITALIAN CUP (semifinals, 2nd leg) : Atalanta 1 (Pasalic 86) Lazio 1 (Romag noli 84) – Lazio win 2-1 on penalties . GERMAN CUP (semifinals) : Bayer Leverkusen 0 Bayern Munich 2. FRENCH LIGUE 1: Paris St-Germain 3 Nantes 0. TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Paris SG 29 21 3 5 65 25 66 Lens 29 20 2 7 57 29 62 Lyon 30 16 6 8 45 30 54 Lille 30 16 6 8 49 34 54 Rennes 30 15 8 7 52 41 53 Marseille 30 16 4 10 58 40 52 FRENCH CUP (semifinals) : Strasbourg 0 Nice 2 (Wahi 51, 82-pen) . CHAMPIONS RELEGATED

Dressing-room snipes and five straight losses seal Rosenior’s fate

Chelsea’s ex-manager Liam Resenior. – REUTERSPIC

I T’S the sort of story that always comes out when a manager goes, but actually tends to indicate doom long before then. Even weeks before Liam Rosenior left Chelsea after less than four months in charge yesterday following a run of five successive Premier League defeats, with some players couldn’t help indulging in some of the unfair commentary. Sources say some comments surrounded Rosenior’s decision not to wear his glasses at the training ground. One or two even joked about whether it was to look tougher. This fed into a huge reason why the 41-year-old has now gone, and why Chelsea now face up to an FA Cup semifinal with Calum McFarlane again a stand-in. Beaten seven times in their last eight games in all competitions, Chelsea have failed to even score while losing five consecutive league games for the first time since 1912. The 41-year-old had been lured away from Strasbourg, the French club which is affiliated to Chelsea’s American owners, in January following the departure of Enzo Maresca. But a 3-0 defeat to Brighton on Wednesday that Rosenior himself labelled “unacceptable” proved to be the final straw for the Blues’ hierarchy. “Chelsea Football Club has today parted com pany with Head Coach Liam Rosenior,” read a club statement. “This has not been a decision the club has taken lightly, however recent results and perform ances have fallen below the necessary standards with still so much more to play for this season,” the statement added. McFarlane, who was one of Rosenior’s assis tants, will take charge as a caretaker for the rest of the season, with his first match the FA Cup semifi nal against Leeds United on Sunday. Chelsea sit seventh in the Premier League, seven points adrift of the Champions League places, with four games of the season remaining. McFarlane will be tasked with salvaging at least some form of European football to ease the finan cial burden on a club.

Rosenior was a surprise choice to replace Italian coach Maresca, who was considered to be popular with the Chelsea players but had fallen out with his superiors. After promising early signs, Chelsea were knocked out of the League Cup by Arsenal and were then humiliated 8-2 on aggregate by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League last 16. Cracks in the relationship between the squad and coach have been in evidence for weeks. The decision to part company with Maresca in January was publicly questioned by Enzo Fernandez and Marc Cucurella. It’s always difficult for a new coach to come in mid-season, especially when there are tactical dif ferences to their predecessor. Rosenior was attempting to introduce his own ideology. There’s even a belief from some sources that spoke to The Independent that a shift away from Maresca’s more possession-based approach may have con tributed to an injury crisis, which only made Rosenior’s job harder, with his best players fre quently absent. All of which only emphasises what a mess the club has become. Something was going wrong at almost every level. During some of his final words as Chelsea head coach, Rosenior said: “In the basics, in the pride that you should have in wearing the shirt, that was unacceptable. I’ve defended the players and I am accountable. I’ve always said that. “After tonight (losing to Brighton), I think the players as well need to have a look in the mirror for what they put in. You can talk about tactics, tactics come after the basics. Having more courage to play, winning duels, winning headers, tackles, conceding terrible goals. That was an unaccept able performance tonight.” Rosenior’s lamentable fate, and a career that may have been set back by an ill-advised appoint ment he couldn’t say no to, is just another act in that play. It never looked like a long-term plan. It came together chaotically and ended chaotically. That’s the story of Chelsea right now. – AFP/The Independent