Malaysia Celebrate Asian Squash Double

Top seeds Mohd Azlan Iskandar and Nicol David celebrated the fifth successive Malaysian double in the Asian Championships - but did so in contrasting styles in the 14th staging of the biennial squash event in Kuwait.

In the men's final, Iskandar was made to battle for exactly two hours by compatriot Ong Beng Hee - the defending champion, ranked two places lower in the world - before winning 5-9, 8-10, 9-5, 9-0, 9-7 to secure the title for the first time.

The match was a repeat of the 2006 final in Chinese Taipei, in which Beng Hee won the regional title for a fourth successive time.

But, arguably, the standout performance in the men's event was made by 20-year-old Abdullah Almezayen - a 9/16 seed who upset Pakistan's 5/8 seed Yasir Butt 9-3, 10-9, 4-9, 5-9, 10-8 in 98 minutes in the last sixteen before overcoming India's 3/4 seed Saurav Ghosal in a 72-minute quarter-final to become the first Kuwaiti to reach the semi-finals this decade.

The women's event saw Malaysia's Nicol David confirm her status as the undisputed Queen of Asian Squash when she beat long-time Hong Kong rival Rebecca Chiu 9-5, 9-2, 9-2 in 34 minutes in the final.

David, voted the 'Asian Sportswoman of the Year' in December, has now won the prestigious title for a remarkable six times in a row - since first claiming the crown in 1998 as a 14-year-old!

The triumph also marks the fourth Asian Championship final in which David has beaten Chiu - and brings the total of her regional singles titles (including the Asian Games and Asian Junior Championships) to ten!

Men's final:
[1] Mohd Azlan Iskandar (MAS) bt [2] Ong Beng Hee (MAS) 5-9, 8-10, 9-5, 9-0, 9-7 (120m)

Women's final:
[1] Nicol David (MAS) bt [2] Rebecca Chiu (HKG) 9-5, 9-2, 9-2 (34m)