KUALA LUMPUR: Despite world No. 10 S. Sivasangari losing her match, Malaysia still managed to reach the women's final of the Asian Team Squash Championships in Dalian, China, on Saturday.
In the semi-finals, top seeds Malaysia defeated Japan 2-1 and will face Hong Kong, who overcame South Korea 2-0, in the final on Sunday.
Aira Azman gave Malaysia a good start by defeating Risa Sugimoto 11-2, 11-4, 11-5.
However, Japan levelled when Satomi Watanabe upset Asian champion Sivasangari 5-11, 11-7, 12-10, 12-10 in a 41-minute match.
National No. 2 Rachel Arnold then delivered the winning point for Malaysia with an 11-3, 11-3, 11-8 victory over Akari Midorikawa.