Top seeds Malaysia enjoyed a perfect day in Dalian as their women’s team won their 11th Asian Team Championship title and their men’s team won their fifth with 2-0 and 2-1 victories over Hong Kong, China.
The wins for Sivasangari Subramaniam and Rachel Arnold in the women’s final, and for Eain Yow Ng and Ameeshenraj Chandaran in the men’s final, repeated their feat of 2021 where Malaysia won both titles on home court in Kuala Lumpur.
In a tense start to the day’s action, Malaysian No.1 and reigning Asian Games champion Sivasangari Subramaniam fought back several times to down Hong Kong, China No.1 Tomato Ho.
Despite being ranked 14 places below World No.10 Sivasangari, it was Ho who made the more assured start, with the 28-year-old’s extraordinary athleticism on full display as she took a 1-0 lead.
Ho had the opportunity to take a commanding 2-0 lead when she went 9-4 up in game two, but Sivasangari battled back brilliantly to level on a tie break before moving 2-1 up with an 11-6 win in game three.
The Malaysian then opened up a four-point lead in game four as she looked to put the tie to bed, only for Ho to fire back, forcing a tie break, which she converted 12-10 to take the match to five.
With the momentum behind her, Ho came storming out to a 7-2 lead in the decider.
She could not hold her nerve, however, with Sivasangari digging in fantastically to shut down Ho’s attack, eventually breaking Hong Kong hearts with an 11-8 victory.
The second match was a much simpler affair for the top seeds, with Rachel Arnold – who with Sivasangari was part of the Malaysian team that won gold in the team event at last year’s Asian Games – quickly putting Tsz Wing Tong to the sword 11-6, 11-5, 11-8.
The men’s team then picked up where the women had left off, with Malaysian No.1 and Asian Games champion Eain Yow Ng in top form as he took down Hong Kong, China No.1 Tsz Kwan Lau in straight games.
The No.2 seeds hit back well through Henry Leung, with the 29-year-old coming back from a game down to beat Addeen Idrakie 3-1 and take the tie to a third match.
In the crucial match between Ming Hong Tang and Ameeshanraj Chandaran, it was Tang who made the first move, finding his targets well to take the opener 11-8.
20-year-old Chandaran, however, recovered well, chalking off the lead with an 11-8 win of his own.
That win appeared to bolster the belief of the young Malaysian, with Chandaran controlling the third game to win it 11-6 and then clinching the contest with a dominant 11-4 win in game four.
Result: 22nd Asian Team Championship Women’s Final
[1] Malaysia 2-0 Hong Kong, China [2]
Sivasangari Subramaniam bt Tomato Ho 3-2: 10-12, 13-11, 11-6, 10-12, 11-8 (61m)
Rachel Arnold bt Tsz Wing Tong 3-0: 11-6, 11-5, 11-8 (27m)
Result: 22nd Asian Team Championship Men’s Final
[1] Malaysia 2-1 Hong Kong, China [2]
Eain Yow Ng bt Tsz Kwan Lau 3-0: 11-7, 11-8, 11-8 (37m)
Addeen Idrakie lost to Henry Leung: 1-3: 11-4, 7-11, 2-11, 7-11 (42m)
Ameeshenraj Chandaran bt Tang Ming Hong 3-1: 8-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-4 (58m)
Keep up with all the results from the 22nd Asian Team Championships at asiansquash.org.
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