Home Hopes For Malaysian Double In KL

Malaysia's defending champion Mohd Azlan Iskandar produced a stunning upset over Egyptian favourite Wael El Hindi in today's men's semi-finals in the CIMB Malaysian Open to ensure that three of Saturday's four finalists in the major Tour event at the Curve Complex in Kuala Lumpur will be from the host nation.

Third seed Iskandar, the 26-year-old from KL in his fifth successive appearance in the 5-star PSA Tour event's semi-finals, battled for 78 minutes to subdue El Hindi - finally winning 11-8, 12-10, 8-11, 11-9 to earn his first PSA Tour victory over the higher-ranked Egyptian since prevailing in the 2004 final.

"I try my best to feel I am not at home - but playing here sometimes helps me and sometimes doesn't," explained Iskandar, winner of the title in 2004 and 2007.

"Today I didn't hear a thing until seven-all in the fourth! At that point I really didn't know what I was doing and froze a bit. But then I let my racket do its thing."

Fellow countryman Ong Beng Hee, the No2 seed, also took four games to secure his place in the final, beating fourth-seeded Australian Stewart Boswell 5-11, 11-8, 13-11, 11-5 in 62 minutes.

Both finalists are celebrating their third Tour final appearances of the year, but while Iskandar is marking the 19th of his career, it is Ong Beng Hee's 20th since making his debut in the Milo Open final in 1996, also in KL.

But, but perhaps more remarkably, Saturday's clash will be the pair's sixth successive meeting in a major final - after contesting the KL Open, Asian Championship and Asian Games finals in 2006, then the Asian Championship and KL Open climaxes earlier this year.

The final of the women's $53,500 WISPA World Tour Gold event will feature the top two seeds, with local heroine Nicol David now just one win away from her fourth title in a row. But the top seed and world number one from Penang was pushed to four games for the second successive day before beating career-long rival Rachael Grinham, the world champion from Australia, 11-3, 7-11, 11-1, 11-6 in 43 minutes.

David will now face another Grinham, Rachael's younger sister Natalie Grinham. The second seed stemmed a spirited comeback display by England's Tania Bailey before beating the fourth seed - playing her first event since undergoing knee surgery - 11-8, 11-7, 9-11, 11-5 in 41 minutes.

The final will mark the third meeting this year between the world's top two players - and the 19th of their careers, with the Malaysian boasting a 12-6 head-to-head advantage. But while David is recording the 43rd WISPA final of her career, Natalie Grinham is celebrating her 30th!

Women's semi-finals:
[1] Nicol David (MAS) bt [3] Rachael Grinham (AUS) 11-3, 7-11, 11-1, 11-6 (43m)
[2] Natalie Grinham (NED) bt [4] Tania Bailey (ENG) 11-8, 11-7, 9-11, 11-5 (41m)

Men's semi-finals:
[3] Mohd Azlan Iskandar (MAS) bt [1] Wael El Hindi (EGY) 11-8, 12-10, 8-11, 11-9 (78m)
[2] Ong Beng Hee (MAS) bt [4] Stewart Boswell (AUS) 5-11, 11-8, 13-11, 11-5 (62m)