KUALA LUMPUR – National young women’s squash player, Aira Azman is just a step away from playing in her first World Junior Squash Championships (WJSC) final as she stormed into the semi-final of the 2023 edition in Melbourne, Australia, today.
The 18-year-old player took just 21 minutes to defeat Lauren Baltayan of France, 11-4, 11-9, 11-6 in the quarter-final match of the tournament held in Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre.
However, a delicate task awaits the joint third/fourth seed player in the semi-final as she will lock horns against second seed from Egypt, Fayrouz Aboelkheir who defeated American player Caroline Fouts, 11-5, 14-12, 11-5, in the other last four tie.
Commenting after the match, Aira said she was pretty pleased to advance to the semi-final and hoped to play her best in a bid to reach the final.
“My game was pretty solid today but I think it will be a really tough match tomorrow,” she was quoted as saying in a statement shared by the Squash Racquets Association of Malaysia (SRAM).
Meanwhile, it was the end of the road for Malaysia’s sole survivor in men’s singles, Joachim Chuah, after he was shown the exit from the six-day championships by Mohammad Hamza Khan of Pakistan, 11-8, 9-11, 11-7, 12-10.
Hamza will face French player Melvil Scianimanico, who overcame Hollis Robertson of the United States, 11-9, 6-11, 11-2, 9-11, 11-8.
On another development, Aira’s sister, Aifa Azman lived up to expectations as she secured a final spot with her partner, Syafiq Kamal in the SRAM Mixed Squash Invitational Championships held in the National Squash Centre, Bukit Jalil, here.
Syafiq-Aifa were made to slog by their opponents, Muhammad Hafiz Zhafri Abdul Harif-Duncan Lee, before clinching 11-8, 9-11, 11-8 victory in 57 minutes.
In the meantime, another national pair, Addeen Idrakie-Ainaa Amani, also made it to the final after they denied the challenge posed by Hong Kong duo, Tong Tze Wing-Tang Ming Hong, 11-8, 10-11, 11-9. – Bernama, July 21, 2023
