KUALA LUMPUR: It’s a high five for Mohd Syafiq Kamal!
The sixth seeded Syafiq finally got it right when he won the fifth leg of the Malaysian Tour Squash title in Perlis.
The Kelantan player, who fluffed his lines in his four previous finals, stunned fifth seed and world junior champion Ng Eain Yow 14-12, 4-11, 8-11, 11-4, 11-6 in a thrilling 65-minute final at the Kangar Sports Complex in Perlis on Wednesday.
“I am so relieved to finally win my first title in my fifth final (three times last year and twice this year),” said Syafiq.
“I started well and won the first set, but Eain Yow stormed back to put me under pressure and take the next two sets.
“Luckily I stayed cool and played really well to retrieve his shots to level the score at 2-2.
“In the decider, I felt more confident ... I’m happy to have beaten the world junior champion twice in one week.”
Syafiq had also defeated Eain Yow in the quarter-finals of the fourth leg in Penang last week.
“Winning the title has boosted my confidence to go all out in the sixth leg in Kuantan (from Oct 25-28),” said Syafiq.
In women’s competition, S. Sivasangari powered her way to a record fifth consecutive title.
The second-seeded Sivasangari upset top seed Vanessa Chu of Hong Kong by coming back from a set down to win 9-11, 11-4, 9-11, 11-4. 11-2 in 45 minutes.
The 17-year-old from Kedah was unhappy with the way she played in the final.
“I could have easily won in straight sets as I was leading 8-3 and 8-4 in the first and third sets. But somehow I lost focus ... and both the sets.
“I need to learn to maintain my focus throughout the game,” said Asian Junior Under-19 champion Sivasangari.
Syafiq and Sivasangari each received US$902 (RM3,783) for their wins while Eain Yow and Vanessa each earned US$617 (RM2,588).
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