Skip to main content

Nicol and Co stand a chance to win world team event

World No. 1 and seven-time world champion Nicol David (right) is still going strong despite turning 31 this year.
World No. 1 and seven-time world champion Nicol David (right) is still going strong despite turning 31 this year.


PETALING JAYA: The national women’s squash team will leave for Canada on Thursday in good spirits, knowing that it is probably their best chance to win the Women’s World Team Championship for the first time.

Malaysia have finished third in the last four editions of the biennial world teams – from 2006-2012, which is also their best achievement to date.

With world No. 1 and seven-time world champion Nicol David still going strong, despite turning 31 this year, and national No. 2 Low Wee Wern and No. 3 Delia Arnold showing good form of late, there is a good chance that the team could go beyond the semi-finals for the first time when the competition starts from Dec 1-6 at the Niagara-on-the-Lake.

The fourth member of the team is Zulhijjah Azan.

“This is definitely our best chance to finish better than third,” said world No. 7 Wee Wern.
“Nicol is always reliable as our No. 1 ... she’s still the world No. 1 ... and Delia has been playing well lately. So, we definitely have the most complete team ever.

“As for myself, I’ve not played since winning the National Championships earlier this month but I feel really good about my game.

“I’ve played my best squash since the second half of the year and I’m really looking forward to the team event. It’s just different from playing on the Women’s Squash Association (WSA) Tour.
“We won the team event at the Asian Games and that was huge for the team. I guess in team events we can really go the extra mile ... knowing the country is behind us.

“Our biggest challenge will be defending champions Egypt and England.
“As the No. 2 player, I’ll be up against England’s Alison (Waters) and Egypt’s Nour (El Sherbini).
“I have not beaten either player, but our matches have always been close five-setters. So, I’m definitely looking forward to that challenge, although our first target is to get out of the group stage in good nick.”

Malaysia are seeded third and are in Group C with sixth seeds US, hosts Canada, Mexico and Guatemala.

Nicol and Co should get out of the group stage with ease. But they will need a stroke of good luck in the quarter-final draw, which will be done after the group matches, in order to avoid favourites Egypt in the semi-finals.



by Kng Zheng Guan - The Star

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rajagobal Let Off The Hook

PETALING JAYA, April 24 (Bernama) -- National head coach Datuk K. Rajagobal was let off the hook by the Football Association of Malaysia's (FAM) Disciplinary Committee after finding no evidence that he had violated FAM's Article 88, as claimed. FAM Disciplinary Committee chairman Datuk Taufik Abdul Razak said the committee had decided not to charge Rajagobal after carefully analysing the video of the post-match press conference by the 56-year-old coach. "After listening to the recording of the post-match press conference, we decided to drop the charge against Rajagopal as he did not make such a statement. "Maybe his (Rajagobal) assessment and comments of the match was misconstrued by the media. There was no mention of the FAM policy throughout his comments," said Taufik after emerging from a three-hour Disciplinary Committee meeting at Wisma FAM in Kelana Jaya, here, Wednesday. Rajagobal who does not mince his words when asked to com...
4 comments
Read more

Atlet Tempuhi Empat Kejohanan Besar Sebelum Olimpik Rio 2016

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Mei (Bernama) -- Empat temasya sukan penting yang dijadual berlangsung mulai Disember ini hingga 2015 menjadi medan persiapan atlet negara sebelum menghadapi cabaran Sukan Olimpik 2016 di Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, kata Menteri Belia dan Sukan, Khairy Jamaluddin Jumaati. Kejohanan berkenaan ialah Sukan SEA di Myanmar pada Disember, Sukan Asia 2014 di Incheon, Korea Selatan, Sukan Komanwel 2014 di Glasgow, Scotland dan Sukan SEA 2015 di Singapura. Bercakap kepada pemberita selepas melawat Majlis Sukan Negara (MSN) di Bukit Jalil di sini, Khairy berkata kesemua temasya sukan itu dilihat amat penting dalam memastikan impian negara untuk membawa pulang pingat emas Olimpik pertama menjadi kenyataan. "Kita di Kementerian Belia dan Sukan (KBS) mahupun MSN akan memastikan semua atlet mendapat bantuan sewajarnya dalam melakukan persiapan ke arah membawa pulang pingat emas pertama negara di Rio de Janeiro, Brazil nanti," katanya. Dalam perkemb...
6 comments
Read more

Ex-coach's jail sentence cut to a year

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal yesterday sentenced former athletics coach C. Ramanathan to 12 months' jail for molesting two junior athletes 19 years ago. A three-man bench led by Datuk Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus unanimously dismissed Ramanathan's appeal against conviction, but varied the jail sentence of four years to a year, which was to run concurrently. Following yesterday's ruling, Ramanathan, 75, a former teacher, walked out a free man as he had served 10 months in Kajang Prison. Convicts get one-third remission for good behaviour while in prison. However, he will lose his pension. Hishamudin, who sat with Datuk Abdul Wahab Patail and Datuk Linton Albert, said the court found no merit to overturn the conviction. "However, in reducing the sentence, we considered Ramanathan's age and the long years the appeal has taken." Deputy public prosecutor Awang Armadajaya Awang Mahmud submitted that then High Court judge Tan Sri Abdull Hamid E...
2 comments
Read more