PENANG: Kedah have a foot in the AFC Cup quarter-finals. But they are leaving nothing to chance in their final Group D fixture against leaders Home United of Singapore at the Darulaman Stadium in Alor Star tonight.

They made a request for the services of two of their players in the national team preparing for the Inter-Continental Under-23 tournament Cup tournament, which will be played in Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur, beginning tomorrow.

National coach B. Sathianathan agreed to release winger Badrul Baktiar but rejected Kedah’s request for striker Mohd Khyril Muhymeen.

Kedah coach Mohd Azraai Khor, who has successfully led the Canaries to retain the Super League title earlier this month, said yesterday: “We are not too disappointed that we will get only one player back to strengthen the side.

“For Khyril, we have able replacement to choose from in Saramsak Kram, Hasmawi Hassan and Shafiq Jamal. All of them have recovered from injuries.”

Azraai added that Kedah would also be out to salvage some lost pride after the 1-5 rout by Home United in the first-round match.

“The players are properly rested after the successful campaign in the Super League.

“ We want to show our superiority at home again and qualifying for the AFC Cup quarter-finals will give my young side more international exposure,” he said.

Perak, the other Malaysian team in the competition, are also in with a shot to reach the quarter-finals.

Coach Steve Darby’s side will be up against Group E leaders Singapore Armed Forces in their final preliminary round fixture tonight in Singapore.

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TheStar Sports

PETALING JAYA: National bowler Zulmazran Zulkifli has been in awesome form since the beginning of the year.

But Malaysia need more than just one man blazing the lanes in order to make a strong impact in the World Championships for men in Thailand from Aug 21-31.

And with only three months left before the major tournament, chief coach Holloway Cheah is bent on strengthening the depth of the team.

Triumphant: The Malaysian team led by World Ranking Masters women’s champion Wendy Chai (fourth left) and men’s runner-up Zulmazran Zulkifli (third left) posing at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport yesterday. – Bernama

In Jakarta on Sunday, Zulmazran became the first Malaysian man to reach the final of the World Ranking Masters. He went down to 1-2 (191-248, 179-171, 185-212) to Jari Ratia of Finland.

It would have been double joy for Malaysia if Zulmazran had beaten the Finn. Earlier, seasoned campaigner Wendy Chai made history as the first Malaysian winner of the World Ranking Masters.

Holloway said that Zulmazran had showed more confidence in his game since making the top 16 in the Denny’s World Championships in Indianapolis in February. He went on to win the Malaysian Open in March.

“He has been on a roll and is certainly the bowler to watch for this year. I only wish that I had two or three Zulmazrans in the men’s team,” said Holloway, who returned home with the bowlers from Jakarta yesterday.

On a roll: Zulmazran is Malaysia’s best male bowler at the moment.

Besides Zulmazran, the others in the elite men’s team are Alex Liew, Daniel Lim, Aaron Kong, Adrian Ang and Mohd Noer Said.

Alex and Daniel also competed in the World Ranking Masters but both failed to make the top eight knockout stage, finishing in 16th and 18th spots respectively after the 24-game qualification round.

“Alex and Daniel are still struggling in their game. I will be helping them to fine tune their game – especially on the technical aspects,” said Holloway.

He added that he would expect stronger performances from the men in their next major tournament, the Asian Championships in Hong Kong from July 4-13.

On Wendy’s superb performances on her comeback trail, Holloway said that Malaysia had not seen the best of her yet.

“I was worried about Wendy, especially after the Malaysian Open. She had lost a lot of weight and did not perform up to my expectations. I am glad that she showed what she is made of in Jakarta,” said Holloway.

“But Wendy can still do better than this. I have advised her to put on a few more kilos and work on having more strength in her game.

“With her recent performances, I have confirmed her name for the Asian championships together with Shalin (Zulkifli), Esther (Cheah) and Zandra (Aziela Ibrahim Hakimi). The others have to prove themselves in the Singapore and Indonesian Opens next month.”

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http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2008/5/7/sports/21171667&sec=sports