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Free Malaysia Today
5 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Free Malaysia Today
Musetti makes light work of lucky loser to reach third round
A Galan double fault in the third game handed Lorenzo Musetti the first break. (AP pic) PARIS : Italian Lorenzo Musetti continued his renaissance when he eased into the third round of the French Open with a no-nonsense 6-4 6-0 6-4 victory against Colombian lucky loser Daniel Galan on Wednesday. The eighth-seeded Musetti's main trouble was intermittent rain on Court Simonne Matthieu as he set up a meeting with Argentine Mariano Navone or Reilly Opelka of the US. 'It was a solid performance from the beginning until the end. I had some ups and downs during the first and the third set. Definitely, I cannot complain about the level that I'm showing,' Musetti, who reached the final at the Monte Carlo Masters and the last four in Madrid and Rome in the three big claycourt tournaments before Roland Garros, told reporters. 'The conditions today were not easy but I managed to find a way to show my tennis and my game. I think we made a great, great match.' Musetti said things had started clicking into place after the Monte Carlo Masters last month. 'After the final in Monte Carlo, there was, I think, a boost of confidence, of something inside that I needed to have. That was probably the results, the thing that I achieved in Monte Carlo,' said the world number seven, who has never made it past the fourth round at Roland Garros. 'It was a strange week because every match I came back from a set down. Many, many times I was really close to losing the match. 'Definitely, I think after that I felt like another player also in the daily routine and I know better what I have to do. Of course, also the results in Madrid and Rome, they were like the confirmation of this step forward that I made,' he said. A Galan double fault in the third game handed Musetti the first break and the Italian opened up a 5-2 lead after aggressive play helped him to steal his opponent's serve again. The Colombian pulled back a break in the eighth game as Musetti's serve wobbled. But, Musetti saw off another break as he served for the set, which he bagged with a commanding smash. He then stepped up a gear, allowing Galan only five points in the second set and while the Colombian offered more in the third, there was no comeback as Musetti wrapped it up on serve.
Free Malaysia Today
5 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Free Malaysia Today
Nadal touch helps Paolini reach French Open third round
The Italian fourth seed said she tried to mix it up and play aggressively herself. (AP pic) PARIS : Last year's French Open runner-up Jasmine Paolini gave a touch to Rafael Nadal's footprint on Court Phlippe Chatrier before racing into the third round with a 6-3 6-3 victory against Australia's Ajla Tomljanovic on Wednesday. The Italian fourth seed was barely bothered in a one-sided affair on a gloomy Parisian day as she set up a meeting with Ukrainian lucky loser Yuliia Starodubtseva or Russian Anastasia Potapova. During the warm-up, Paolini, who is trained by Nadal's former coach Marc Lopez, approached the permanent footprint of the 14-times French Open champion that was installed next to the net on Roland Garros's main court during a ceremony in the Spaniard's honour last Sunday, and gave it a light touch. 'It's hard to play against Ajla, she's very aggressive but I tried to mix it up and play aggressively myself,' Paolini said. 'Last year, I played two matches here and a bit at the Olympics, now I'm a bit more used to it (Court Philippe Chatrier). The diminutive Paolini, who easily handled Tomljanovic's all-in approach, sealed the opening set with a cross-court passing shot after dragging her opponent to the net with a subtle drop shot. She kept her focus in the second set, wrapping it up in front of a barely half-capacity crowd – a common occurrence for the French Open opening match on the main court.
Free Malaysia Today
5 hours ago
- Health
- Free Malaysia Today
Ruud limps out of French Open in second round
The seventh seed lost to Nuno Borges as a knee injury took its toll. (AP pic) PARIS : Norwegian Casper Ruud on Wednesday blasted the ATP's ranking system as 'like a rat race' which forces players to compete with injuries as the former two-time French Open runner-up slumped to a second-round defeat. Seventh seed Ruud lost 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-0 to Portugal's world number 41 Nuno Borges as a knee injury he has been carrying the entire clay season took its toll. The 26-year-old Ruud said he first felt the problem at Monte Carlo in April. He won in Madrid and played in Rome but pulled out of Geneva last week in the hope of being in top form for Roland Garros. Ruud reached the final in Paris in 2022 and 2023 before a run to the last four a year ago. 'It's been with me actually the whole clay season on and off,' Ruud said after losing to Borges. 'Depending a little bit on how kind of physically tough some matches are, the day after it will either be a bit more sore or not. 'The scan didn't know show any structural damage, which is a good thing. There's liquid of inflammation in there that needs to settle. 'As we know, it's a hectic clay season, and I decided to kind of push through it doing some anti-inflammatory pills and painkillers to try to get rid of it, which has helped to a certain degree but not enough. 'I will have some more time now to let it heal and rest for a long time.' Ruud lamented the difficulty in taking time off on the ATP tour to fully heal an injury. 'It's kind of like a rat race when it comes to the rankings, as well,' he said. 'You feel you're obligated to play with certain rules that the ATP have set up with the mandatory events. 'You feel like you lose a lot if you don't show up and play, both economically, point-wise, ranking-wise and opportunity-wise. 'It's a questionable system because on one hand you don't want to show up injured, and you maybe give the spot to another one.' 'Completely drilled' On Wednesday, Ruud won the first set against Borges but lost the next two. He had his leg massaged between the third and fourth sets, but to no avail, as he came back on court to lose the final set in 20 minutes. 'I wish I could stay longer. This is the Slam where I feel like I have a bigger chance of doing well,' said Ruud. He has not gone beyond the last 16 at any of the other three majors since losing the 2022 US Open final to Carlos Alcaraz. 'It's hopefully nothing too serious,' added Ruud. 'I don't want to take anything away from Nuno, because I think he played a phenomenal match, a really high level. Borges is through to the third round at Roland Garros for the first time and will play Australian 25th seed Alexei Popyrin for a place in the last 16. 'I feel like I was completely drilled in the first set. I wasn't handling the situation the best… but I kept on trying and I realised he started to slow down a little,' said Borges. 'He obviously wasn't 100% today.' 'It's a big milestone for me to be in the third round,' added Borges, who reached the second week at the Australian and US Opens last year.
Free Malaysia Today
5 hours ago
- General
- Free Malaysia Today
Religious affairs minister wants Pride event cancelled
Religious affairs minister Na'im Mokhtar urged authorities, including the police, to investigate the event and take appropriate action if any laws are found to have been violated. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA : Religious affairs minister Na'im Mokhtar has urged the organisers of a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-themed event next month to cancel their plans and not proceed with the programme. He was responding to reports of an event themed 'Pride Care: Queer Stories & Sexual Health Awareness', allegedly planned by the youth wing of a political party on June 21, which has gone viral on social media. 'The organisation of such a programme, even if held behind closed doors, clearly challenges societal norms and the religious values upheld by the majority,' he said in a statement. Na'im urged authorities, including the police, to immediately investigate the event and take appropriate action if any laws are found to have been violated. He also said the Islamic development department (Jakim) and state religious departments are ready to enforce regulations, particularly if the event involves Muslim participants. 'At the same time, I call on all parties to help defend our society's social and moral structure from any elements that could undermine our faith, ethics, and national harmony,' he said. Na'im reiterated that the Madani government remains committed to upholding the Islamic principles in national governance to protect religion, morality, and human dignity. 'Deviant cultures will never be accepted as the norm in Malaysia,' he said.
Free Malaysia Today
5 hours ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Of Asean 2045, trade shifts, and Myanmar moves
Southeast Asian leaders met in Kuala Lumpur over two days for the 46th Asean Summit and related summits. KUALA LUMPUR : Southeast Asia took centre stage this week as leaders gathered for a rare convergence of three back-to-back summits – the 46th Asean Summit, the 2nd Asean-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit, and the inaugural Asean-GCC-China Summit. From long-term roadmaps and economic resilience plans to deepening strategic alliances, the message was clear: Asean is laying the groundwork to future-proof the region. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, chairing the 46th summit, warned that the very foundations of Asean were being tested by rising protectionism, the ongoing Myanmar crisis, and a fragmented global order. 'It is the sense of centrality and our conviction to forge our own future that will enable us to stay ahead of the curve,' he said in his opening remarks. From stalemate to strategy on Myanmar Asean's credibility continues to be challenged by the prolonged civil war in Myanmar, and this year's summit signalled a potential pivot in approach. For the first time, Asean foreign ministers broached the idea of appointing a permanent special envoy to Myanmar, moving away from the current rotating system that has struggled to yield results. Thomas Daniel of ISIS told FMT this showed that Asean was 'finally recognising the need to move beyond its ad hoc approach', though much would depend on how the envoy's role was defined. 'Asean has always demonstrated flexibility between principles and pragmatism, and the same ought to apply to how it approaches Myanmar; but there is no excuse for inaction,' Daniel said. A tripartite push for closer cooperation The 2nd Asean-GCC Summit reinforced growing Gulf interest in Southeast Asia, with both sides pledging to expand cooperation in trade, investment and energy. Two-way trade between Asean and the GCC is expected to hit US$180 billion (RM757 billion) by 2032, a figure that Julia Roknifard of Taylor's University described as a 'steady and incremental rise'. 'It is clear that the GCC is looking to trade and invest with safer bets than the US or European Union over the long-term,' she told FMT. On the ongoing Asean-GCC free trade agreement talks, Roknifard said 'Asean could see significant investment inflows', particularly if the Gulf states broadened their focus beyond energy and into key sectors for Asean's growth. The momentum carried into the first-ever Asean-GCC-China Summit, where Chinese premier Li Qiang pledged, in his opening remarks, to bring 'powerful momentum' to the partnership described as 'one plus one plus one is greater than three'. 'As China's differences with the US and the West persist, it understandably reaches out more proactively to Southeast Asia and the Global South, both of which have traditionally been close to China,' Oh Ei Sun of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs told FMT. Navigating turbulences better together Capping off the summit, Asean leaders unveiled the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on 'Asean 2045: Our Shared Future' – a forward-looking vision to steer the region through the next two decades of disruption and opportunity. 'We underscore the importance of enhancing Asean's resilience and promoting collective, efficient, effective and innovative responses to regional and global challenges and future shocks,' it reads – a rallying cry to secure the region's future. A five-year action plan was also adopted to boost regional trade, facilitate freer movement of goods and people, and attract foreign investment through regulatory reforms in industries such as mining, agriculture and manufacturing. In a separate joint statement, the leaders also pledged to upgrade the bloc's Asean+1 free trade deals and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), a strategic shield against rising external headwinds and an effort to anchor the region firmly in the global economy. Together, these moves signal Asean's determination to not just survive global disruptions, but to shape the future with confidence, cohesion, and purpose.
