KUALA LUMPUR, May 21 (Bernama) -- Malaysia emerged as Group B champions in the team regu event of the 2026 Sepak Takraw World Cup after recording a stylish 3-0 victory over Myanmar in their final group match at the Titiwangsa Stadium here today.
The victory completed an unbeaten run for the national squad in the group stage, while also redeeming their disappointment following a previous defeat to Myanmar in the regu event.
Despite having already secured a spot in the quarterfinals early on, Ahmad Jais Baharun's men still delivered an energetic performance as the first regu, comprising Zulkifli Abd Razak, Muhammad Afifuddin Mohd Razali, and Aidil Aiman Azwawi, easily overcame their opponents 15-7, 15-9.
The country's winning momentum was maintained by the second regu through the trio of Mohammad Syahir Mohd Rosdi, Farhan Adam, and Mohamad Azlan Alias, who displayed clinical gameplay to secure a 15-11, 15-6 win.
The nation's third regu, represented by Haziq Hairul Nizam, Muhammad Noraizat Mohd Nordin, Amirul Zazwan Amir, and Hafizul Hayazi Adnan, appeared the most dominant, giving Myanmar no room to breathe before wrapping up a comfortable 15-13, 15-5 victory.
Malaysia is scheduled to face Japan in the quarterfinal tomorrow in their bid to advance further and chase the championship title.
Meanwhile, Mohamad Azlan Alias who plays as the killer in the National team said that the national regu's disappointment over failing to reach the final was the main driving factor for his team to bounce back with a stylish win in their mission to reach the quarterfinals.
He said that he and his teammates had discussed and reassessed the weaknesses that occurred in the previous regu match to fine-tune the team's gameplay.
"Win or lose, we hope this team can do better. We are putting the regu event behind us and focusing on giving the best performance for the team and the country.
"We were indeed disappointed, but we cannot dwell on it too much because we need to focus on the next game," he told reporters after the match here tonight.
-- BERNAMA
