M’sian Team Makes History With Double Win at Sepak Takraw World Cup, PM Anwar Offers Congratulations

The Sepak Takraw World Cup was first introduced in 2011, but Malaysia has never won…until now. On May 22, both the national doubles and inter-regu teams emerged as victors at the Titiwangsa Stadium. With the competition currently in its fourth edition, Malaysia has never won a title at the World Cup before this.

The ISTAF World Cup is an indoor international sepak takraw competition conducted by the International Sepaktakraw Federation (ISTAF), contested by men's and women's national teams.

As reported by NST, Aidil Aiman Azwawi-Noraizat Mohd Nordin (substitute Baihakki A'ripin) defeated Thailand's Seksan Tubtong-Kittiphum Sareebut (Tanaphon Sapyen) 17-16, 15-13 to claim the doubles crown.

Additionally, the highly anticipated inter-regu final saw Malaysia's Farhan Adam, Syahir Rosdi, and Azlan Alias (substitutes Haziq Hairul Nizam, Shahalril Aiman Halim) downing Thailand's Poramet Siriswat, Sittipong Khamchan, and Varayut Jantarasena ( substitutes Siriwat Sakha, Pichet Pansan) 15-8, 15-12.

Image Credit: Bernama

This marks the first time a Malaysian regu has beaten their Thai counterparts since the Melaka leg of the Istaf Super Series in 2015.

The Malaysian team was never really threatened by a shaky Thai side despite the latter challenging numerous line calls late in the set. They managed to maintain their momentum in the second set.

Team captain Farhan told NST that it was the most meaningful win of his career so far. "First of all, I have to say how grateful I am to be able to win in front of our home crowd here. It is the sweetest moment of my career. "So many times we have played Thailand in the final and lost. But today, we proved we can beat them. The supporters played a huge role today. They really fired us up.”

PMX sends well wishes

Their win caught the attention of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who said in a Facebook post, “A proud and outstanding achievement! Congratulations to the Malaysian sepak takraw squad! Hopefully, this success will inspire many more such achievements in the future!"

The group stage of the team event will begin on May 24. Congratulations to the teams!

Featured Image Credit: facebook.com/anwaribrahimofficial, @sookamalaysia