23/05/2026

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SATURDAY | MAY 23, 2026

Malaysian Paper

Titans collide Malaysia assured of men’s doubles finalist after semifinal sweep

M ALAYSIA are guaranteed a representative in the men’s doubles final of the Malaysia Masters after national pairs Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Mohd Rumsani booked a mouth watering all-Malaysian semifinal clash today. Playing at the Unifi Arena yester day, Aaron-Wooi Yik cruised past China’s Hu Ke Yuan-Lin Xian Yi 21-15, 21-16 in just 35 minutes to secure their place in the last four. Speaking about yesterday’s encounter, Aaron admitted it was a difficult battle but was pleased that Malaysia will have at least one pair in the final. “I think it’s definitely going to be a tough game tomorrow (today). But the most important thing is that Malaysia will have one men’s doubles pair in the final,” he said after the match. On paper, Aaron-Wooi Yik appears to hold the upper hand heading into the semifinal, having won six of their previous eight meetings against Sze Fei-Izzuddin. Meanwhile, Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin were forced to dig deep before over coming Japan’s eighth seeds Kakeru Kumagai-Hiroki Nishi 21-17, 16-21, 21-16 in a gripping 53-minute quar terfinal battle. Goh credited the home crowd for playing a crucial role in the victory, saying the vocal support from the fans helped pile pressure on the Japanese pair throughout the match. Nur Izzuddin admitted it was a tough encounter but was pleased that they managed to find a way past the resilient Kumagai-Nishi duo. Looking ahead to today’s semifinal, Nur Izzuddin said they would focus on

for the next game and the next tourna ment,” he told reporters. Earlier, national women’s singles shuttler K. Letshanaa saw her impres sive run at the Malaysia Masters come to an end after crashing out in the quarterfinals against Japan’s Hina Akechi. Letshanaa made a promising start and appeared on course to take the opening game comfortably after rac ing to a 20-11 lead in the match at the Unifi Arena. Despite taking the opening game 21–19, the world No. 32 lost momen tum as Japan’s world No. 24 stormed back to win 21–12, 21–10 and book a semifinal spot after 57 minutes. Letshanaa admitted she paid the price for trying to finish off the open ing game too quickly. “I wanted to finish the opening set faster and that was why I started to lose focus. However, the Japanese player also played quite well, was con sistent and kept changing her game plan,” she told reporters after the match. She will now turn her attention to the Singapore Open next week, where a daunting opening-round clash against China’s world No. 4 Chen Yu Fei awaits. National top mixed doubles pair Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei crashed out of the Malaysia Masters quarterfi nals after a shock 18–21, 16–21 defeat to China’s new pairing Gao Jia Xuan and Wei Ya Xin yesterday. The world No. 4 duo failed to match their 2024 semifinal achieve ment, falling in 44 minutes despite home advantage. The Malaysia Masters 2026, a Super 500 tournament, runs until May 24 and offers a total prize purse of RM1.98 million. – Bernama

Wan Arif admitted the achievement came at the right time after the pair struggled to make an impact in the opening months of the season. “Before this, we managed to reach only the second round this year, not even the quarterfinals. It has been five months, nearly half a year. “So, this will restore our confidence

ond at the Malaysia Masters after also reaching the last four in the 2024 edi tion. The current world No. 16 lost to the then champions from Denmark Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen 13-21, 19-21 in the Malaysia Masters 2024 semifinals. Speaking after yesterday’s match,

their own game and be ready to take on whoever stands in their way next. Fifth seeds Wan Arif Wan Junaidi Yap Roy King booked their place in the last four after defeating American pair Chen Zhi Yi-Presley Smith 21-15, 21 19 in 33 minutes. It marked their first semifinal appearance of the year and their sec

National men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia (left) and Soh Wooi Yik (right) take a wefie with Malaysian fans after reaching the semifinals of the 2026 Malaysia Masters at the Axiata Arena yesterday. – BERNAMAPIC

English Premier League set for final-day drama

P R EMIE R LEAGUE FIXTU R E S

THE Premier League season reaches its cres cendo tomorrow with all 10 matches kicking off simultaneously in a final act packed with jeop ardy at the bottom end of the table and nearer the top in a European race tangled in permuta tions. The title has already been decided and four Champions League places have gone to league winners Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Aston Villa. So attention now shifts to the final European berths – and a relegation scrap few would have predicted when the season kicked off involving Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United. The drama is stark and simple at the bottom: one of the two London clubs will go down. Spurs are in the better position, 17th on 38 points, two ahead of West Ham who are 18th and in the third relegation spot. Only one combi nation of results sends Spurs down: defeat at home to Everton plus a victory for West Ham who host Leeds.

stories of the season. They arrive at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground on a 17-game unbeaten run, their consistency propelling them into sixth and firmly into the European picture. The stakes may extend beyond a single Champions League slot. Aston Villa’s Europa League triumph on Thursday has created the possibility of a sixth English entrant into next season’s competition, but only if Villa finish fifth in the league. That would require a Liverpool win in what will be talisman Mohamed Salah’s final appear ance as a Red at Anfield, and a Villa loss at City, which is expected to be an emotional farewell to manager Pep Guardiola after a trophy-laden decade with the club. If Villa finish fourth, the extended route closes and sixth drops into the Europa League, the con tinent’s second-most prestigious club competi tion. Brighton & Hove Albion, who host the Red Devils, remain the most realistic side capable of breaking into sixth – they are three points

“When you fight for the relegation, you have to stay inside of the league until the last minute of the last game of the season,” Spurs manager Roberto de Zerbi said. “We have to stay alive. It is a big day for us. “The most important is to keep the dignity, to keep the pride, to go on holiday like this (head up) and not like this (head down).” Victory for West Ham is essential and even that may not suffice, with their inferior goal dif ference leaving them reliant on help from Everton in north London. The other major storyline is the battle for the final one or two Champions League places. Liverpool hold pole position as they host Brentford, knowing a point will be enough to secure fifth. Bournemouth, who clinched some form of European qualification with their 1-1 draw against Man City on Wednesday, sit three points back, but well behind Liverpool in goal difference. Bournemouth’s surge has been one of the

All matches at 11pm Malaysian time TOMO RR OW B righton vs Man United B urnley vs Wolves Crystal Palace vs Arsenal Fulham vs N ewcastle Liverpool vs B rentford Man City vs Aston Villa N ottm Forest vs B ournemouth S underland vs Chelsea Tottenham vs Everton West Ham vs Leeds United

behind Bournemouth in seventh – while a broader group, including Chelsea, Brentford and Sunderland, are chasing Europa League and Conference League spots in a congested mid table fight. – Reuters

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