Rachel Arnold to face Hong Kong's Tze Lok in Asian Women's Individual Squash C'ships final

KUCHING: National squash ace Rachel Arnold emerged as Malaysia's sole representative to advance to the final of the 23rd Asian Individual Squash Championships after defeating fellow Malaysian Aifa Azman in the women's semi-final at the Sarawak Squash Centre, Petra Jaya, here today.
The world No. 19 player overcame Aifa 11-9, 11-2, 8-11, 9-11, 12-10 in a fierce battle that lasted 56 minutes.
This victory sees Rachel carrying the nation's hopes into the final, just one step away from clinching her maiden Asian title, after another Malaysian representative, Yee Xin Ying, failed to advance to the final in another semifinal.
Yee was defeated by Hong Kong's Ho Tze Lok, who secured a 11-9, 5-11, 5-11, 11-9, 11-6 victory in a match that lasted 45 minutes.
Rachel is scheduled to face Ho in tomorrow's final to vie for the title of the 23rd edition of the championships.
Following their semi-final losses, Yee and Aifa concluded their campaigns at the tournament by sharing third placing.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

The Star

26 minutes ago

• The Star

Yew Sin marries former Japanese ace Aya Ohori in Malacca

PETALING JAYA: Malaysian men's doubles shuttler Ong Yew Sin and former Japanese women's singles ace Aya Ohori have officially tied the knot. The couple were wed in a civil marriage ceremony at the National Registration Department (JPN) in Malacca on Thursday (June 19). The ceremony took place at JPN Malacca's Marriage and Divorce Division, where the couple exchanged vows in the presence of assistant registrar Nur Fatehah Razali and close family members from both sides. In a statement, JPN Melaka expressed its honour in being part of the couple's special moment and extended its best wishes for a lasting union that celebrates the coming together of two cultures. "Celebrating the love of Malaysian shuttler Ong Yew Sin and his bride Aya Ohori. "Our heartfelt congratulations to the couple. May this beautiful union of love between two cultures last a lifetime," shared JPN in a social media post. Yew Sin, 30, won bronze at the 2021 World Championships with his partner Teo Ee Yi, and the pair currently sit at No. 31 in the world rankings. Ohori won a bronze medal at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games and also captured titles at the Thailand Masters and Australian Open last year. However, she announced her retirement at the end of the season.

New Straits Times

4 hours ago

• New Straits Times

RTG to give pro shuttlers better training facility

PUTRAJAYA: Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh wants the Road to Gold (RTG) programme to provide professional shuttlers under RTG a better facility to conduct their training. Yeoh said RTG coordinator Datuk Stuart Ramalingam is currently working out the details with the independent players. Two professional pairs - Nur Izzuddin Rumsani-Goh Sze Fei (men's doubles) and Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai (mixed doubles) - put pen to paper on their RTG pledges earlier this week. The two pairs are currently training at a badminton facility within Endah Parade. "I hope we can help find them a more suitable place to train, a place which is more private so they don't have to go to shopping malls where you (the public) can see our players training," said Yeoh today (June 21). "I believe Datuk Stuart will coordinate assistance for them. "I don't have the full details yet but these are the types of assistance we are looking to give them. We could also improve access to pre-existing infrastructure to help them improve their performances." Yeoh said RTG will also provide assistance to the professionals in terms of support from the National Sports Institute and also cover approved travel expenses to tournaments abroad. Yeoh expects to see independent shuttlers continue to conduct joint-training exercises with their counterparts under the BA of Malaysia (BAM). "We already had joint-training programmes previously during the previous Olympic cycle, it is normal," said Yeoh. "What is important here is that all our players have sparring partners of equal standards regardless of whether they are professionals or under BAM." RTG is intended to provide cream of the crop Malaysian athletes the additional support they need to challenge for gold at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics as well as other major international competitions. On a separate note, Yeoh said she has not received any updates on the status of women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah, who have been contemplating leaving BAM to turn professional. "As I had said before, I am not aware of what the latest status is. From what I had read in the news, they said they have not decided and are waiting for BAM to make a decision," said Yeoh. "So I hope BAM will find a solution soon so this does not affect our athletes' preparations. "Regardless, Pearly-Thinaah are already in the RTG programme and we will continue to give them strong support. "They have already shown improvement recently and I hope any (potential) changes that happen do not affect their performances." Yeoh was speaking after delivering her speech at the 2025 Asean Persons with Disabilities in Sports Conference in Putrajaya today. Over 250 representatives from Southeast Asian countries, local stakeholders and non-governmental organisations attended the two-day conference (June 20-21). The objective of the conference is to empower the disabled community through the development of sports for all.

The Sun

18 hours ago

• The Sun

Rachel Arnold reaches Asian Squash final after epic win

KUCHING: National squash ace Rachel Arnold emerged as Malaysia's sole representative to advance to the final of the 23rd Asian Individual Squash Championships after defeating fellow Malaysian Aifa Azman in the women's semi-final at the Sarawak Squash Centre, Petra Jaya, here today. The world No. 19 player overcame Aifa 11-9, 11-2, 8-11, 9-11, 12-10 in a fierce battle that lasted 56 minutes. This victory sees Rachel carrying the nation's hopes into the final, just one step away from clinching her maiden Asian title, after another Malaysian representative, Yee Xin Ying, failed to advance to the final in another semifinal. Yee was defeated by Hong Kong's Ho Tze Lok, who secured a 11-9, 5-11, 5-11, 11-9, 11-6 victory in a match that lasted 45 minutes. Rachel is scheduled to face Ho in tomorrow's final to vie for the title of the 23rd edition of the championships. Following their semi-final losses, Yee and Aifa concluded their campaigns at the tournament by sharing third placing.