The sole Malaysian left standing, 'Agile' Aira won her maiden R16 victory in El Gouna Open

IT was yet the finals, but the tension was palpable. Her knees were pulsating with pain from an injury she got during the previous match. Each time it throbbed, her focus on the game began to waver and her breath was getting harder to control.

The odds were nerve-wracking and not in her favour, but Malaysia’s squash athlete Aira Azman refused to yield. The 19-year-old Alor Setar-born wanted to win Round 2 of the El Gouna International Squash Open 2024 not matter what.

And indeed, at 6:53PM (Egyptian time) yesterday, Aira, world’s No. 41 succeeded in her mission, besting Scotland’s Georgia Adderley—world’s No. 32—with a score of 11-7, 8-11, 6-11, 14-12 and 11-9.

“It was a tough match for me. I played against her two months ago in the US, it was very tight as well. I’m very happy with yesterday’s fight. Gave my best despite my condition and fought till very the end, said Aira when contacted.

But while Aira triumphed, her other four compatriots did not.

She is the sole Malaysian who will be advancing to Round 3 of the competition, colloquially dubbed as Round of 16, where 16 of the best players compete against each other, with winners advancing to the quarterfinals.

“I think everyone had a really tough match yesterday. They gave their best. It was definitely not easy,” said Aira, when contacted today.

“I am aware of the expectations of being the only Malaysian left standing but I’m just looking forward to give my best performance,” she added.

Her older sister, Aifa lost to Egypt’s Malak Khafagy by: 9-11, 9-11, 11-9 and 5-11; whereas Rachel Arnold lost to Eygpt’s Nour El Sherbini by: 7-11, 10-12 and 3-11; Sivasangari Subramaniam also lost to Egypt’s Nouran Gohar by: 6-11, 8-11 and 4-11.

In the men’s category, Malaysia’s Eain Yow Ng lost to France’s Gregoire Marche by: 11-8, 11-9, 8-11, 8-11 and 10-12.

In the coming Round of 16, Aira will be competing against England’s Georgina Kennedy, world’s No. 6.

“I look forward to be playing in the glass court and compete against the world’s number six,” remarked Aira, whose participation in the El Gouna Open marked her maiden debut in the Platinum level squash tournament.

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* Article by Zaidi Azmi