FOUR Malaysians have booked their spots in the semi-finals of the Asia zone qualifiers of the World Squash Championship at the Jalan Duta Squash Centre yesterday.
In the two all-Malaysian men singles match ups, second seeded Muhammad Addeen Idrakie Bahtiar beat compatriot Darren Rahul Pragasam 14-12, 7-11, 11-4, 9-11, 11-4 in a 74-minute match, while Bryan Lim Tze Kang emerged victorious over Ong Sai Hung with a score of 11-8, 9-11, 6-11, 11-4, 11-6.
“I should have ended the match in the third set, but Rahul really played well today. My mistake allowing him to beat me even though I had the lead.
“I kept to my game strategy and knew I was the fitter of the two… I used all the advantages I had to win,” Adden said in a statement issued by the Squash Racquets Association of Malaysia yesterday.
Adden will meet third seeded Tan Ming Hong of Hong Kong in the semifinal match tomorrow after he beat Malaysian Mohammad Syafiq Mohd Kamal 11-7, 5-11, 11-7, 8-11, 9-11, while Bryan will take on first seed Ryunosuke Tsukue of Japan in the other semi-final match.
In the women’s singles event, young and rising star, Sehveetrraa Kumar, 19, sprung a surprise by beating second seed Akanksha Salunkhe of India 11-6, 11-5, 11-8 in 28 minutes to set up a semi-final meeting with Toby Sze of Hong Kong today.
“I feel this is the biggest win of my career, and this is the World Championship qualifiers and I made it to the semis. It’s my first win over her, so I’m proud of what I’ve achieved on court yesterday.
“I’m going against Toby tomorrow and I’ve played her before but haven’t won yet. I only want to continue my momentum and don’t want to think too much about anything else,” Sehveetrraa said.
Her teammate Chan Yi Wen, had a lucky break and won against Fung Ching Hei of Hong Kong 11-9, 8-11, 11-3, 11-9 in 40 minutes, and will meet first seeded Cheng Nga Ching, also of Hong Kong, in the other semi-final match today.
