KUALA LUMPUR: The last two months have been a testing time for Rachel Arnold, who not only failed to defend her Sea Games women's individual gold medal, but also finished runner-up twice on the Malaysian Squash Tour.
Since winning her second career PSA Tour title at the Royal Lake Club in May, Rachel has struggled with her fitness – though her consistency has seen her rise to a career-best 50th in world rankings.
With the Malaysian Open starting at Bukit Jalil on Wednesday, Rachel hopes to put her Sea Games disappointment behind her and become only the second Malaysian after Nicol David to win the women's title at the tournament.
"I think I've just been struggling with my fitness," said Rachel, who won the Sea Games women's doubles gold as a consolation.
"I've been playing so many tournaments back-to-back, but I've been training hard recently, and I hope it will pay off," she said.
Second seed Rachel begins her Malaysian Open campaign against teammate Aika Azman, but she would also have to beat Japan's Satomi Watanabe, Sea Games doubles partner S. Sivasangari, and top seed Zeina Mickawy of Egypt to win the title.
World No 47 Sivasangari, however, has beaten Rachel in their past three meetings, most recently in the Sea Games singles final and the Malaysian Tour final at Bukit Jalil last month.
"Sangari is in my half of the draw, and I should be playing her in the semi-finals," said Rachel, 21.
"Hopefully, if I reach that far, I will focus not on what happened in the past, but on trying to do my best in the match," she added.
Rachel is also hoping that good performances at the Malaysian Open, the Hong Kong Open next month, and the World Championship in Manchester in December can help cement her place in the national contingent for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games next April.
"I'm on the borderline of making the Commonwealth Games team," said Rachel.
"There is a fitness test and I just need to really pass that. I think there's time to improve before the Commonwealth Games and prove myself.
"To be honest, I prefer playing doubles. I think I have a better chance there. But I'd be happy to play in singles as well," she said.
At the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Rachel lost in the second round of the mixed doubles with Valentino Bong, but did not advance past the group stage of the women's doubles with Vanessa Raj.