Hazirah shines in Vegas, could face Li Jane for Queens title
Hazirah appeared unfazed in her maiden PWBA Tour appearance. She booked her place in the title match after toppling several Tour heavyweights - including Colombia's Clara Guerrero, American Missy Parkin and Poland's Daria Pajak - during the two-day match play stage at the Suncoast Hotel and Casino.
Played over a three-game series with total pinfall determining the winner, Hazirah marched to the final from the "Winners Bracket" but narrowly missed out on securing the top seed billing after falling 603–699 to American Josie Barnes.
Nevertheless, the 23-year-old is now just two wins away from capturing one of the PWBA's most coveted crowns.
"The thought of reaching the final is exciting. After all the years of sweat, tears and miles travelled, it now comes down to (securing) two wins," said Hazirah.
"I'm trying my best not to let the moment overwhelm me, but instead to stay present and enjoy it."
She is assured of at least a third-place finish which is already a remarkable achievement for her Tour debut.
Li Jane, the reigning PWBA Player of the Year, secured the third seed slot by topping a fiercely contested four-way playoff in the "Elimination Bracket" with a scorching 735 series.
She outscored Bercier (685), Guerrero (679) and American Elysia Current (641) to stay in the title hunt.
In the stepladder format, Guerrero will face Canada's Valerie Bercier in the opening match, with Li Jane awaiting the winner.
A victory would set up an all-Malaysian final between Li Jane and Hazirah in the US$60,000 (RM257,000) competition.
For Li Jane, this marks her third stepladder finals appearance at the Queens, having finished fifth in 2016 and runner-up in 2019.
Li Jane will be aiming to replicate her superb 2024 season, which saw her capture four titles — including two majors, the US Women's Open and the PWBA Tour Championship — en route to being crowned Player of the Year.
A USBC Queens triumph would complete her collection of PWBA majors and further cement her legacy.
She has already shown signs of solid form this year, having finished sixth at the season-opening Topeka Open in Kansas just two weeks ago - narrowly missing out on a top-five stepladder spot.
Several other Malaysians also made it to the top 64 match play stage, marking the strongest national presence at the USBC Queens since 2017.
All competed out of their own pockets, as the PWBA Tour is not covered under the national team's annual tournament budget.
Among them were reigning World Cup winner Natasha Roslan, Gillian Lim, Nur Syazwani Sahar, Nora Lyana Nastasia Norkamal, and Siti Safiyah Amirah Abdul Rahman.
Natasha's run was halted by Li Jane herself, while Gillian fell to Stephanie Casey, Syazwani was stopped by Parkin, Nora lost to Rebecca Hagerman and Siti was defeated by Bercier.
Esther Cheah and Alisha Iman Cheong did not advance past the preliminary 15-game roll-off.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Tennis-Shelton ready for New York spotlight at U.S. Open
Tennis - U.S. Open - Flushing Meadows, New York, United States - August 19, 2025 Ben Shelton of the U.S. reacts during the round of 16 mixed doubles match with Taylor Townsend of the U.S. against Amanda Anisimova of the U.S. and Denmark's Holger Rune REUTERS/Kylie Cooper NEW YORK (Reuters) -Ben Shelton returns to Flushing Meadows with newfound confidence after claiming his biggest title and a career-high ranking two years after his charmed run to the U.S. Open semi-final. Shelton outlasted Russian Karen Khachanov 6-7(5) 6-4 7-6(3) in a tough fight to secure his first 1000-level trophy in Toronto and hopes that the win will kick start a new level of consistency in his game. "It's certainly going to push me to work harder," he said. "I feel like I have a good grasp now on the things that really work for me against guys who are playing some of the best tennis in the world, and the things that I need to continue to work on." Eager to show this was no fluke, Shelton battled his way to a respectable quarter-final exit at Cincinnati, snapping a streak in which the last three Canadian Open champions had crashed out in their Cincinnati openers. "I'm hungry. I'm in a good rhythm," Shelton said after reaching the final eight at the U.S. Open tune-up tournament, where he would ultimately run out of gas against Alexander Zverev 6-2 6-2. He arrived in New York ranked sixth in the world, a remarkable climb for the 22-year-old who had started the season outside the top 20 and who only two years ago was enjoying his moment of breakout stardom at his domestic major. Shelton put the tennis world on notice when he muscled his way into the U.S. semi-finals at the age of 20, becoming the youngest American man to reach the penultimate round in Flushing Meadows since Michael Chang in 1992. He subdued the competition with his extraordinary athleticism, sending over the fastest serve of the tournament at 149 miles per hour before crashing out to the eventual champion Novak Djokovic. Shelton, who picked up his maiden ATP title a month later, has built finesse to match his power in the two years since and will hope to recreate the magic of his charmed 2023 run when he returns to New York. "The more opportunities that you have, the more times you put yourself in the position to be playing against the best players in the world, you're only going to get better," he told reporters in Toronto. "My tennis IQ and my tennis mind is something that is getting better, and something that needs to continue to get better." The U.S. Open main draw begins on Sunday. (Reporting by Amy Tennery in New YorkEditing by Toby Davis)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Tennis-Who are the other men's contenders to look out for at the US Open?
Aug 16, 2025; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Alexander Zverev (GER) awaits the serve from Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) during the Cincinnati Open at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images/File Photo (Reuters) -The following are some of the other contenders for the men's singles title at the U.S. Open, which begins on Sunday: ALEXANDER ZVEREV (GERMANY) Ranking: 3 Alexander Zverev showed flashes of his best to reach the Australian Open final at the start of the year, but suffered a shock defeat to Arthur Rinderknech in the opening round of Wimbledon, after which he told reporters he felt "empty" and was considering therapy. He has since enjoyed a promising run in the North American hardcourt swing and will be desperate to finally end his Grand Slam duck with victory at the U.S. Open. The German reached the semi-finals of both ATP 1000 tournaments held this month, losing in three sets to Karen Khachanov in Toronto and then battling dizziness in his defeat by Carlos Alcaraz in Cincinnati. TAYLOR FRITZ (UNITED STATES) Ranking: 4 Fritz is looking to go one better than last year after falling to Jannik Sinner in the final but the American has struggled under pressure on a few occasions over the past few weeks. He was beaten in the quarter-finals in Washington by Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, lost to compatriot Ben Shelton in the Toronto semi-finals and then suffered a shock defeat by qualifier Terence Atmane in Cincinnati. The 27-year-old must fully exploit his devastating serve if he hopes to become the first American man to win a major since Andy Roddick in 2003. JACK DRAPER (BRITAIN) Ranking: 5 When Jack Draper suffered a semi-final defeat by eventual champion Sinner in New York last year, he was ranked 25th in the world. The Briton has since gone from strength to strength on the tour and claimed the biggest title of his career at Indian Wells, while also reaching the final in Madrid, during a strong 2025 campaign. However, the past few months have not been easy on the 23-year-old. Faced with the immense burden of shouldering home hopes at Wimbledon, he lost in second round to Marin Cilic and has not played a singles match since due to an arm injury, likely leaving him slightly undercooked for the year's final Grand Slam. ALEX DE MINAUR (AUSTRALIA) Ranking: 8 Alex de Minaur has not had the most consistent season and has twice been bumped out of the top 10, but the Australian put in a heroic display in last month's Washington Open final, saving three match points to claim his first title of the year. He has a tour-leading 24 wins on hard courts this year and should get through the early rounds at Flushing Meadows easily enough. He has never gone past the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam though, and has a woeful 0-6 record against fellow top-10 players this year. FRANCES TIAFOE (UNITED STATES) Ranking: 17 Little has gone right for Frances Tiafoe in the past few months. The American was knocked out in the second round of Wimbledon before failing to string together more than a couple of wins in both DC and Toronto. He suffered another setback in his preparations for the U.S. Open during his fourth-round match against Holger Rune in Cincinnati when he was forced to retire due to a lower back injury. Tiafoe has a knack for turning up his game in New York, however, having reached the semis twice in the last three years. (Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
The Star
10 hours ago
- The Star
Rugby-Welsh winger Rees-Zammit felt he was wasting talent during NFL stint
FILE PHOTO: American Football - NFL - Jacksonville Jaguars v New England Patriots - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - October 20, 2024 Jacksonville Jaguars' Louis Rees-Zammit looks on Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs/File Photo (Reuters) -Louis Rees-Zammit said he felt he was wasting his talent during his NFL stint with the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars but has no regrets about pursuing the American football adventure. The Welsh winger signed for Bristol Bears for the 2025-26 Premiership Rugby season on Thursday, marking his return to union after an 18-month stint in the NFL. The 24-year-old had joined the Chiefs in March last year after impressing scouts at the NFL International Player Pathway. However, the four-times Super Bowl champions left him off their roster for the 2024 season. He later joined the Jaguars, first as part of their practice squad last August and then on their active roster in February, before opting to return to rugby union last month. "I just felt like I was kind of wasting my talent out there," he told British media on Tuesday. "I gave it my best shot but it's very difficult to get into the NFL if you haven't gone through the college system, you just don't get the same opportunities as those boys. "It makes sense from a coach's point of view, because those boys have been playing that sport for so long and it's hard to coach someone up on the sport they've never played before ..." Despite leaving the NFL having never played in a regular-season game, Rees-Zammit said he had no regrets about giving it a shot and that he had learned so much from the likes of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce. "Just to be involved in a locker room that was completely different to rugby, next to global figures like Mahomes and Kelce, I learned from everything they did day to day...," he added. "There's no regrets. I'm very happy that I made the decision because would I regret it if I never did it? That's the biggest regret." (Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
