4 days ago
Malaysia face do-or-die Davis Cup battle against Qatar
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will take on Qatar in a do-or-die battle in the Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Group IV playoff tomorrow — with promotion to Group III on the line.
Malaysia, led by captain Adam Jaya, booked their spot in the playoff as Pool A champions with a 3-0 win over Kyrgyzstan at the National Tennis Centre today.
Koay Hao Sheng battled to a 6-4, 5-7, 5-2 victory over Mirgiiaz Mirdzhaliev, clinching Malaysia's first point after his opponent retired in the deciding set.
Leroy Yong then clinched the tie with a hard-fought 6-4, 7-6 win against Ilgiz Kamchibekov.
The doubles pairing of Darrshan Suresh Kumar-Daniel Prickett completed the sweep, defeating Kirill Kistanov-Erbol Eldiyar Uulu 6-2, 6-0.
A play-off win against Pool B runners-up Qatar will earn Malaysia promotion to Group III next year.
Adam said he was pleased with the team's performance against Kyrgyzstan, but expects Qatar to give a tough challenge.
"These past three days have been satisfying. As you saw, my first singles players over these three days were three different players. In the group, we won all our matches but nothing is more important than tomorrow's D-Day," said the non-playing team skipper.
"Qatar is a very good team. Like Malaysia, they have experience in Group II and Group III, and are now in Group IV. Their players are consistent and fit."
In the other Pool A match played today, Iraq beat Nepal 3-0. In Pool B, the Philippines cruised to a 3-0 win over Qatar to finish top and will meet Pool A runners-up Kyrgyzstan.
