07-07-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Chinese pickleball player thwarted twice at Panas Malaysia Open but wins singles
Mainland Chinese pickleball player Long Yufei said she avoided the worst outcome after taking the women's singles title at the Panas Malaysia Open on Sunday.
One of 12 players on the United Pickleball Association's inaugural Asia Trailblazers Programme, Long, from Shenzhen, started the day chasing multiple crowns in Kuala Lumpur, having reached the semi-finals of all three events.
Long and partner Le Xuan Duc of Vietnam lost their mixed doubles semi to eventual winners Nicola Schoeman and Vanshik Kapadiam before forfeiting the third-place play-off. The women's doubles saw Long reach the final with South Korea's Kwon Mi-hae, but they were denied by Wang-Beckvall Xiaoyi of the United States and Wei Ting-chieh from Taiwan.
That left the singles final, in which Long found herself facing that worst-case scenario when Schoeman had two championship points. But Long reeled off four points on the trot to steal the second game, then took the decider to win it 3-11, 12-10, 11-5.
Hong Kong pickleball player Jack Wong in action in the men's singles. Photo: PPA Tour Asia
She said it was 'blood, sweat and tears' after what was the opening event of the first PPA Tour Asia, which will also feature legs in Hong Kong, Japan and mainland China.
