Latest news with #PacificOceania
Arab Times
19-07-2025
- Sport
- Arab Times
Double Victory Keeps Kuwait In Davis Cup Group D
KUWAIT CITY, July 19: The Kuwaiti national tennis team secured their place in Group D of the Davis Cup Men's World Tennis Championship after notching two crucial victories over Pacific Oceania and Nepal in the Asia-Oceania qualifiers held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, starting July 14. Kuwait opened their campaign with a 2-1 win against Pacific Oceania, with singles victories by Issa Salman Qabazard and Bader Al-Abdullah Al-Qahtani, while the doubles pair fell short. They followed up with a dominant 2-0 victory over Nepal, clinching both singles matches and eliminating the need for a doubles contest. With these results, Kuwait maintained its standing among Asia's top teams at this major international event. The squad, guided by coach Abdullah Behbehani and headed by Federation Chairman Abdulredha Al-Gharib, included players Essa Qabazard, Bader Al-Qahtani, Ali Al-Shatti, and Yaqoub Mohammed. Eight teams competed in the qualifiers: Kuwait, Qatar, the Philippines, Malaysia, Kyrgyzstan, Iraq, Nepal, and Pacific Oceania.
New Straits Times
12-07-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Adam Jaya back as Davis Cup captain
KUALA LUMPUR: Former national tennis player Adam Jaya has been appointed as Davis Cup team captain for Malaysia. The national squad will be competing in the Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Group IV competition at National Tennis Centre (NTC) here on July 16-19. Despite earlier plans to appoint Koay Hao Sheng as playing captain, national head coach Muliyadi Jamal said the vastly experienced Adam was called in to help the squad. "Yes we did initially plan to have Hao Sheng as playing captain, however, we do not want to burden him as he is also our key player," said Muliyadi during a press conference at NTC today (July 12). "We need him to remain focused on playing as he will likely be fielded in singles and doubles. "This is why, after discussion with the Tennis Malaysia (TM) committee, we have decided to bring in Adam. "He is very experienced and has captained both our Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup sides at least seven or eight times now. We need his services." Malaysia, relegated from Group III for the first time in history last year, are top seeds. Pacific Oceania have been seeded second while the other teams in the competition are Iraq, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Qatar and the Philippines. The countries will be split into two groups. The draw will be held on Tuesday (July 15). "Although we are the top seeds, I believe Philippines will be the favourites," said Muliyadi. "As they are unseeded, they can be placed into any group. It would actually benefit us if they are drawn in the same group as us. "This way we will not have to face them in the promotional playoffs." The Philippines tennis federation was suspended by the ITF in late 2020 due to governance issues. The suspension was lifted in January last year which is why they are currently making their way back up from the lower divisions in both men's and women's tennis. The top-two teams from each group will qualify for the promotional playoffs - essentially the semi-finals. The last two teams standing will be promoted to Group III. Muliyadi is hoping his players will rise to the occasion. "This is the first time Malaysia is playing in Group IV and I have told the players that we have to make it back to Group III. That is imperative," said Muliyadi. "When we were relegated last year, we saw the impact it brought. The association and the players were badly criticised by the public. "We have home ground advantage and hopefully that will boost our players to go for promotion." Besides Hao Sheng, Leroy Yong, Darrshan Kumar, Daniel Prickett, Naufal Kamaruzzaman and Devesh Sarawanan have been shortlisted for the squad. Muliyadi will announce the final five-man squad on Tuesday.
New Straits Times
20-06-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
BJKC: Malaysia book semi-final date with Indonesia
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia confirmed their spot in the semi-finals of the Billie Jean King Cup (BJKC) Asia-Oceania Group II competition following a 3-0 win over Singapore at the National Tennis Centre on Friday. Elsa Wan Abdul Rahman earned Malaysia's opening point with a straightforward 6-0, 6-2 win over Sophie Chua. Joleen Saw then secured Malaysia an unassailable 2-0 lead with a hard-earned 7-5, 7-6 (7-1) win over Eva Marie Desvignes. Elsa then teamed up with Hannah Yip to whip Audey Tong-Erin Lee 6-2, 6-0 and seal Malaysia a 3-0 win. The start of the group A tie was delayed due to heavy rain in the morning. The win was enough for Malaysia to finish second in Group A and qualify for the semi-finals. Malaysia, seeded fourth, will face Indonesia for a spot in the final on Saturday. The other semi-final will feature Mongolia against the Philippines. The Philippines defeated Pacific Oceania 2-1 to finish second behind Indonesia in Group B.
New Straits Times
26-04-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Malaysian players could face Alex Eala in Billie Jean King Cup
KUALA LUMPUR: National coach Koay Hao Sheng is expecting a tough outing at the Billie Jean King Cup Asia-Oceania Group II competition in Kuala Lumpur on June 16-21. Hao Sheng believes Pacific Oceania, Indonesia and Philippines will be Malaysia's toughest opponents in the competition, especially if the latter fields their rising star Alexandra Eala. The national squad will, however, have home ground advantage at the National Tennis Centre at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Halim. "We have seen these teams play before so we know it will be a tough competition," said Hao Sheng recently. "Pacific Oceania are coming down from Group I (last year) while Philippines have one player (Alexandra) who is playing really well at the moment and just reached the semi-finals in Miami recently. "I believe she (Alexandra) is keen to play for her country in BJKC but I am not sure if she will be able to compete here (Kuala Lumpur). "The Group II competition will be held after the end of the French Open and a few weeks before Wimbledon. "I guess whether she plays or not will depend on what her preparation plans are for Wimbledon." Alexandra, competing on a wild card, achieved a breakthrough performance at the Miami Open last month, scalping three grand slam champions - Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek - en route to the semi-finals where she was narrowly edged by Jessica Pegula. The 19-year-old is now at a career-high No. 72 in the WTA rankings. The other countries competing in Group II are Singapore, Uzbekistan, Northern Mariana Islands, Kyrgyzstan, Iran and Mongolia. Malaysia achieved a top-three finish in the BJKC Asia-Oceania Group II competition last year, which was the national team's best-ever performance. "It will not be easy but we will definitely try to equal our top-three finish from last year," said Hao Sheng. "Nothing is guaranteed because the other teams will also be well prepared but at the same time nothing is impossible." Tennis Malaysia is expected to name their BJKC squad roughly two weeks before the Group II competition starts. Hao Sheng is likely to be named team captain.
