Home Duo Make Malaysia Cup Finals

Malaysian No.1s Sivasangari Subramaniam and Eain Yow Ng both earned their places in the finals of the ACE Malaysia Cup with respective wins over Scotland's Georgia Adderley and India's Abhay Singh.

No.1 seed Youssef Soliman claimed the other men's final place with after defeating fellow Egyptian and No.3 seed Youssef Ibrahim in a 95-minute battle, while fellow Egyptian Amina Orfi, the No.2 seed, won out in a clash with Malaysia's Rachel Arnold.

Malaysian top seed Sivasangari earned the first win of the day over Scot Adderley. The win guarantees an improvement on last year's Malaysia Cup campaign that saw the Malaysia No.1 lose out in her semi-final match against Egypt's Nour El Tayeb.

It was a dream start to the match for the No.1 seed as the Malaysian looked a step ahead of her Scottish opponent. Adderley looked off the pace of the game, possibly due to a tough, physical quarter-final encounter against Aira Azman, and Sivasangari showed no mercy to fire winners in and take the first game 11-3.

Adderley managed to get more points on the board in game two and three, but Sivasangari was very much in control as the Malaysian continued her masterclass in controlling the match to take the last two game 11-8, 11-6 and win her place in the final.

The third game saw Sivasangari maintain the incredibly high bar she had set herself in the first two games. Her accuracy around the front prevented the Scotswoman's retrieving ability from having an effect on the game as she cruised to 3/0 victory in 31 minutes.

"I played pretty well today compared to the last time we played two weeks ago," said the Malaysian after the match. "I think I was very disciplined with my game plan. She's a runner, she's a fighter so I tried to stay as disciplined as I can and just try and execute my game plan. I think I did really well to win in three.

"It's always great to be playing at home, especially in front of all this home crowd. Please come again tomorrow and support me, and hopefully I do well."

In the final match of the day, Malaysian No.2 seed Yow Ng secured a dramatic win over India's Abhay Singh to confirm his spot in the final.

The first two games looked very much like it followed the home favourite's masterplan as the Malaysian extended the rallies, focusing play along the backhand wall. Singh played some well-placed winning shots as the games went on, but it was Yow Ng who was sharp as he claimed the first two games 11-5, 11-4.

Yow Ng's early third game lead came to an abrupt end as errors began to crop up, and a reinvigorated Singh punished any sloppy movements from the Malaysian to take game three 11-7.

The No.2 seed regained control of the match in the fourth game, recreating the conditions which made the first and second game so difficult for his opponent. A cheer bellowed out from the packed Malaysian crowd in Kuala Lumpur as the home favourite took the game 11-4 to win the match and secure his place in the final where he will face Egypt's Youssef Soliman.

"I feel relieved. Overall, I think that was quite a tough match. Abhay's such an accurate player that you can't give him any chances. He didn't let me feel comfortable on there. The threat of his straight lines, straight drops are so good.

"He's had a great run this tournament. We all know how dangerous he is and I was prepared for it. I'm just happy to get through.

"[Playing Youssef Soliman in the final] is definitely going to be tough for both of us. We know each other's game so well so I'll need all the support I can from everyone here."

The first men's semi-final saw a cagey affair between Egyptian compatriots Youssef Soliman and Youssef Ibrahim that spanned 95 minutes. Both players had moments of dominance in the match, but it was No.1 seed Soliman that edged the encounter in the fifth game to secure his spot in the final.

"It was a hell of a battle," said Soliman after the match. "He controlled, I controlled, He's adjusting, I'm adjusting and that's how we want to play the game of squash."

Egyptian prodigy Amina Orfi earned her place in the women's final with a confident victory over home favourite and No.3 seed Rachel Arnold. Arnold lead heavily in the first game, but after the No.2 seed saved three game balls to overturn Arnold's lead and take game one, 17-year-old Orfi had the mental edge that helped her win the match in straight games.

"I felt the first game was the key to the match," said Orfi after the match. "Last few times I lost the first game to her when I was leading, so for a change I won the game when she was leading so I'm happy that I won it.