09/06/2026

SPORTS TUESDAY | JUNE 9, 2026

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P ROFESSIONAL men’s doubles pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani have the potential to become world champions at the 2026 World Championships in New Delhi from Aug 17 to 23. National badminton legend Datuk Razif Sidek said the significant improvement shown by the world No. 7 pair, including ending Malaysia’s 18 year title drought at the 2026 Indonesia Open in Istora Senayan, Jakarta yesterday, proved they are capable of becoming world title contenders. Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin clinched the Indonesia Open title after coming from behind to defeat home pair Raymond Indra-Nikolaus Joaquin 13 21, 21-18, 21-10 in 49 minutes. Razif, who won the Indonesia Open with his brother Datuk Seri Jalani Sidek in 1988 and 1990, said yesterday’s victory demonstrated the pair’s mental toughness in handling high pressure despite strong home crowd support at the prestig ious Super 1000 event. He added that their win over top seeds and reigning champions from South Korea Kim Won Ho-Seo Seung Jae in the semi-finals, 21-18, 17-21,

Razif’s bold prediction Former great sees world championship potential in Malaysia’s top pair

Vestergaard 16-21, 17-21. Youth and Sports Minister Dr Mohamed Taufiq Johari congratulated Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin in a Facebook post yesterday, saying their achieve ment ended Malaysia’s 18-year wait for the men’s doubles title at the prestigious tournament. “Congratulations to national pair Goh Sze Fei Izzuddin Rumsani on winning the 2026 Indonesia Open yesterday. The nation’s 18-year wait has finally come to an end,” he said in the post. The victory further reinforced Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin’s status as one of the world’s leading men’s doubles pairs and provided a timely boost for the national contingent ahead of several major tournaments scheduled for the remainder of the season.

medals and significant world ranking points. “It’s not easy to win in Indonesia, especially playing at Istora Senayan stadium and keeping the Malaysian flag flying high. We should all be proud of their achievement,” he said. Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin’s victory saw Malaysia reclaim the men’s doubles Indonesia Open title for the first time since Zakry Abdul Latif Fairuzizuan Tazari achieved it in the 2008 edition. Yesterday’s success marked their second tri umph at Istora Senayan this year after winning the 2026 Indonesia Masters by defeating the same opponents 21-19, 21-13 in January. Last month, Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin finished run ners-up at the 2026 Malaysia Masters after losing to Denmark’s Daniel Lundgaard-Mads

21-16, signalled that they are genuine contenders for the World Championships. “Since the last four tournaments, I can see their movement, strategy and confidence level is going up and they managed to strike it at the right time. “So it’s unbelievable, I did not expect them to play so well at the Indonesia Open. I hope they can maintain their performance. Definitely they have a chance and I hope they succeed at the World Championships,” he told Bernama . Razif also acknowledged that competing in BWF World Tour Super 1000 tournaments such as the Indonesia Open carries higher pressure com pared to the World Championships. He said Super 1000 events offer lucrative prize money, while the World Championships provide

TFC locks in key men as rebuild begins TERENGGANU FC (TFC) are expected to retain 50% of their existing players for the upcoming 2026/27 Malaysia League (M-League) season, which is set to kick off in August. Terengganu Football Club Sdn Bhd (TFCSB) Chief Operating Officer Mohd Syahrizan Mohd Zain said that half of the squad, mainly local mainstays, still have existing contracts with the Turtles. He said key players include Mohd Shahrul Nizam Ros Hasni, Muhammad Safwan Mazlan, Muhammad Ubaidillah Shamsul Fazili, Gervane Kastaneer, Eshon Panjshanbe and Shervoni Mabatshoev. “The other 50 per cent of players have already reached the end of their contracts with TFC. There are several players, including import player Raianderson da Costa or Careca, whom we are currently negotiating with to retain his services. “We are aware of rumours suggest ing that Careca may be moving to Indonesia, but we will try our best to retain him as he played a key role in the team last season,” he said when contacted yesterday. Mohd Syahrizan said TFC, who have decided to compete in the Super League next season, are also looking at several import players to fill attacking positions, although this depends on the club’s financial situa tion. He said that for the new season, the Turtles will undergo a restructur ing process involving management, financial, technical and operational aspects to build a more stable, sus tainable and competitive team in the long term. Based at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium (SSMZA), TFC achieved their target by finishing the 2025/26 Super League season in fifth place with 35 points from 24 matches. – Bernama

Danish to turn Hungarian setback into motivation MALAYSIAN Moto3 rider Muhammad Hakim Danish Ramli has described his disappointing out ing at the Hungarian Grand Prix (GP) as a valuable learning experience after his race ended in a first-lap crash on Sunday. The 18-year-old rider arrived at the Balaton Park Circuit on the back of a career-best performance, hav ing secured his maiden Moto3 podium at the Italian GP the previ ous week. “Of course, I’m a little disap pointed not to have finished the race after crashing on the opening lap following an incident with another rider who hit me from behind. However, that is part of racing,” he said via a statement yesterday. However, Hakim Danish faced difficulties adapting to the demands of Balaton Park Circuit during his first appearance at the venue. Competing for the Aeon Credit MT Helmets-MSi team, the Terengganu-born rider was unable to advance to Qualifying 2 (Q2) and had to settle for 19th place on the starting grid. “There are still many areas I need to improve, both in terms of my rid ing and my understanding of the track. I will take this experience as a valuable lesson that will help me develop as a rider and come back stronger in the future,” he said. Hakim Danish will now turn his attention to the upcoming Czech Republic GP, scheduled to take place at Automotodrom Brno from June 19 to 21, where he hopes to bounce back and return to points-scoring positions. Hakim Danish sits 10th in the Moto3 standings with 48 points after eight rounds of competition. – Bernama

BRIEFS

Selangor Red Giants celebrate after sweeping Team Vamos 4-0 in the MPL Malaysia Season 17 Grand Final to secure a fifth straight title at Stadium Juara, Kuala Lumpur yesterday. – BERNAMAPIC

SRG’s relentless reign SELANGOR RED GIANTS (SRG) continued their domi nance over the Mobile Legends Bang Bang (MLBB) Professional League Malaysia (MPL MY) when they won their fifth consecutive title yesterday. The SRG lineup of Mark Rusiana (Kramm), Muhammad Haqqullah Ahmad Shahrul Zaman (Sekys), Hazziq Danish Rizwan (Stormie), Muhammad Qayyum Ariffin Mohd Suhairi (Yums) and John Vincent Banal (Innocent) delivered a dominant performance, sweep ing Team Vamos 4-0 in the Season 17 Grand Final at Stadium Juara yesterday. Yums, the SRG Roamer, was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the match. “This season is one of the seasons that we will never forget. We are not at our peak yet. We believe there is always a room to improve everyday as long we are stay hungry, humble and try to reclaim our title (Mid Season Cup (MSC),” SRG coach Michael Bocado (Arcadia) said after the match. Both teams also secured qualification to represent Malaysia at the Mid

Season Cup during the Esports World Cup in Paris this July. MESF eyes six-medal haul THE Malaysia Esports Federation (MESF) is targeting six medals, regardless of colour, at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, in September. Its president, Muhammad Naim Al-Amin, said the target is achiev able based on the current performance of the national athletes who will be competing at the Games. “Of course, we want to do better than before (one silver and one bronze at the Hangzhou Asian Games). So we are targeting at least six medals from the 10 events being contested,” he said when met on Sunday. Meanwhile, Muhammad Naim said the national esports team has so far qualified in three game titles, namely Honor of Kings, Identity V and Naraka. He said other titles, including Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) and PUBG Mobile, will have to go through qualifying rounds scheduled to take place this month.

FAM rejects failure narrative

FOOTBALL Association of Malaysia (FAM) Honorary President Tan Sri Hamidin Mohd Amin said the quality audit report presented by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Fifa should not be interpreted as evidence of failures by FAM’s pre vious management. Instead, he said the report was aimed at strengthening the association’s governance in line with international standards following FAM’s own request to AFC and Fifa to assess the overall admin

ship of the governing body would address issues involving seven national heritage players, which remain a topic of discussion among football fans. “As is known, FAM has already taken preliminary action by lodging a police report and is still await ing further developments. “They (FAM) will not wash their hands of the matter. I am also of the view that the new president and executive committee should examine this issue comprehensively,” he said. – Bernama

on Sunday. Hamidin said the audit was important in help ing to improve FAM and gradually elevate the gov erning body to a higher level. “But that does not mean it was wrong. This is a reform initiative, as stated by Datuk Seri Windsor Paul John (AFC General Secretary), aimed at enhancing and improving FAM,” he said. In a separate development, the former FAM president also expressed hope that the new leader

istrative structure of the national football govern ing body. “What this quality audit does is benchmark against the high standards of AFC and Fifa. It does not mean that what was done previously was wrong. “FAM carried out its responsibilities in accor dance with the statutes that existed at the time, but AFC and Fifa see room for improvement in line with the demands of modern football,” he told reporters