30/04/2026

SPORTS THURSDAY | APR 30, 2026

31

Rexy advocates patience Coach wants Xin Yee to control emotions when partnering Thinaah

RESULTS & STANDINGS

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE (Semifinals) : Paris Saint-Germain 5 (Kvaratskhelia 24,56, Neves 33, Dembele 45+5 pen) Bayern Munich (Kane 17 pen, Olise 41, Upamecano 65, Diaz 68) . ENGLISH CHAMPIONSHIP: South ampton 2 (Manning 58, Larin 80) Ipswich 2 (Burns 48, Clarke 87) . TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Coventry 45 27 11 7 93 45 92 Ipswich 45 22 15 8 77 47 81 Millwall 45 23 11 11 62 49 80 Boro 45 22 13 10 70 45 79 So’ton 45 21 14 10 79 55 77 Wrexham 45 19 13 13 67 63 70 Putri draws on experience to lead Indonesia at Uber Cup FIVE years ago in Aarhus, Denmark, Indonesia’s top women’s singles player Putri Kusuma Wardani was still relatively inexperienced when she competed in her first Uber Cup. The shuttler said she was fortunate to gain experience alongside senior players, including Tokyo 2020 Olympic women’s doubles gold medallists Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu. The presence of experienced players such as Polii not only provided her guid ance on court, but also instilled confi dence and maturity in her as she was entrusted as Indonesia’s second women’s singles player in the competi tion. The 2020 Uber Cup was held in 2021 following the Covid-19 pandemic. Entrusted as Indonesia’s team cap tain for the 2026 edition at Forum Horsens in Denmark, the world No. 6 said she was using the guidance and advice received from Polii in leading her teammates this time around. “Certainly, the responsibility of being captain is extraordinary, as I need to ensure strong bonds among team mates,” she told Bernama. “Of course, I want to use the advice given by Greysia (Polii) to help me lead the team in Horsens. Back in Aarhus, Greysia often motivated and engaged with junior players, and that meant a lot to me.” Putri Kusuma contributed Indonesia’s first point in their 3-2 win over Taiwan in the final Group C match on Tuesday, defeating Chiu Pin-Chian 21-17, 21-17. The result saw Indonesia advance to the quarterfinals of the 2026 Uber Cup as Group C champions, while Taiwan also progressed as runners-up. The 24-year-old said she not only aimed to fulfil her role as team leader, but also hoped to inspire her team mates to reach the Uber Cup final for the second consecutive time after fin ishing runners-up in the 2024 edition in Chengdu, China. The Depok-born player, who was not included in the Uber Cup squads for the 2022 and 2024 editions, admitted that winning this year’s title would not be easy as they had to overcome strong challenges from defending champions China, South Korea and Japan. Meanwhile, Putri Kusuma said she aime to maintain consistency while eye ing her first appearance at the Olympic Games in 2028. – Bernama CHAMPIONS

N ATIONAL doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky wants young national women’s doubles player Ong Xin Yee to exercise more patience when playing alongside the experienced team captain M. Thinaah at the 2026 Uber Cup Finals. After observing their two Group B perform ances, Rexy noted that the 19-year-old also needs to manage her emotions while competing at the Horsens Forum with Thinaah. “A player partnered with Thinaah will cer tainly have respect for her. Xin Yee definitely needs to learn how to play with high-level ath letes. “There is no need to rush to finish points; she needs to be more patient and less emotional,” he said when met in Horsens, Denmark. On Monday, Xin Yee-Thinaah lost 9-21, 9-21 to the world No. 6 pair, Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto, in their second match against Japan, who topped Group B after defeating Malaysia 4 1, leaving the national team to finish as group runner-up. Xin Yee-Thinaah also suffered a narrow 22-20,

without key player Pearly Tan – Thinaah’s regular partner – after she withdrew from the prestigious tournament due to a recent back injury. “Young players like Zi Yu and Noraqilah were not affected by the absence of more experienced players. “They were able to contribute a point, which is a positive result. Credit must be given to them,” he said. Last Saturday, Zi Yu-Noraqilah hogged the spotlight by saving Malaysia’s blushes, securing the winning point against Turkiye after overcom ing Yasemen Bektas-Zehra Erdem 21-18, 21-19. – Bernama A happy Noraqilah said they had played with out pressure. “This is a good experience against those who are top 10 pairs in the world,” said Noraqilah. “Before entering the court I just told Zi Yu not to stress and just play what we are able too. “We learnt a lot from the opponents espe cially on serving up quality shots on the court. “We still have so much to improve as we did quite a bit of errors too.” – Bernama

19-21, 19-21 defeat to Turkiye’s Bengisu Ercetin Nazlican Inci in their opening Group B match last Saturday but Malaysia managed a slim 3-2 victory over Turkiye. Malaysia subsequently secured a quarterfinal berth for the first time in 16 years after sweeping aside South Africa 5-0 last Sunday and will play China today for a place in the last four. In a related development, Rexy expressed admiration for the positive impact shown by young doubles pair Low Zi Yu-Noraqilah Maisarah Ramdan, who were the only represen tatives to contribute a point against Japan. The 16-year-old Zi Yu and Noragilah, 19, only ranked 143rd in the world, upstaged Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi, 21-17, 12-21, 21-19 in a thrilling 64-minute match. The Malaysian team had earlier lost the tie after all players ahead of the young duo – K. Letshanaa, Wong Ling Ching, M. Thinaah-Ong Xin Yee went down in their respective matches – but Zi Yu-Noraqilah tore the script book apart. Rexy said Zi Yu-Noraqilah proved they could shine for the national squad, which is competing

JDT’s Bergson Gustavo Silveira Da Silva (left) tries to push Melaka FC’s Noel Abgre during the Super League match at the Hang Jebat Stadium in Krubong Tuesday night. – BERNAMAPIC

361/26

29/04/2026

2063 9038 5854

7220 9088 6153 7061 7575

5878 6608 8811 3221 4046

5070 0193 5710 9479 6916

1846 6811 0372 2670 9301

JDT’s Munoz wants more despite win

RM5,619,442.45

2063 + 5854 9038 + 5854 5854 + 9038

2063 + 9038 9038 + 2063 5854 + 2063

RM131,156.80

JOHOR DARUL TA’ZIM (JDT) FC head coach Xisco Munoz was relieved to walk away with three points againstMelaka FC at Stadium Hang Jebat in Melaka on Tuesday night, saying his side could have played better. He said JDT controlled large parts of the match and created several clear attacking oppor tunities while maintaining defensive aggression in the 2-1 win in the Super League match. “The most important thing is the three points. I think we can play a little bit better in terms of our behaviour, our style and some other things. “This happens sometimes and we only need to learn from it and try to improve for the next one,” he told reporters after the match. Munoz said the focus now is on finishing the season strongly, with JDT still facing major chal lenges including the Shopee Cup campaign and the Malaysia Cup final. He said maintaining momentum and positive feelings heading into the closing stages of the season is important, in line with the expectations and standards associated with the club’s badge. “We have important challenges ahead. We want to arrive at the end of the season with good feelings because this is what our logo demands,” he said. On the Shopee Cup, Munoz said JDT are

determined to go as far as possible and will pre pare thoroughly to ensure the team reach the final in the best possible condition. JDT remain firmly at the top of the Super League with 64 points, while Melaka FC are in 11th place with 17 points. In Monday’s match, the home side thought they had opened the scoring through Aaron Kumar in the 19th minute, but the effort was ruled out as Mahali Jasuli was deemed to be in an offside position. It was the visitors who finally broke the dead lock in the 44th minute through substitute Ager Aketxe after his powerful long-range strike found the back of the net following a pass from right back Muhammad Syahmi Safari. Marcos Guilherme then scored off a pass from Natxo Insa for JDT to take a 2-0 lead into the break. Melaka FC nearly reduced the deficit through Ahmed Ayman Shamsaldin Abdalazem in the 47th minute, but the goal was disallowed by referee Muhammad Izzul Fikri Kamaruzaman after the player was adjudged to be offside. Undeterred, the hosts picked up their attack and were rewarded in the 73rd minute, when Dino Kalesic converted a pass from Kwangil Pak to narrow the gap for Melaka FC, but the effort was not enough to prevent defeat. – Bernama

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RM9,782,740.29

RM256,296.94

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633

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