SINGAPORE’S Austin Karosi (picture) made light work of third seed Syed Mohd Agil Syed Naguib as he booked his place in the final of the BMW Malaysian National Circuit Leg 1 with a resounding 6-2 6-0 victory over the Malaysian.
The American, who currently resides in Singapore, will face off against second seed Si Yew Ming in tomorrow’s final.
“I performed much better today. My movement and shots around the court yesterday were rather tight and there was a lot of difference today.
“I was more relaxed and it certainly helped. My serves were near perfect and so was my forehand but Syed Agil gave me a stern challenge and was unlucky on a few occasions,” said Karosi who is ranked 920 in the world.
Syed Agil, who is nursing a shoulder injury, was off to a perfect start but as Austin pushed him on the rallies, the 19-year-old ended up losing his momentum.
“Everything was okay at the start but after a while, my shoulder began to ache and I was finding it hard to serve and hit my forehands,” said Syed Agil.
National No.1 Si Yew Ming, meanwhile, was given a stern challenge by Abdul Hazli Zainuddin but the 34-year-old held his nerves to overcome his opponent 6-4, 7-5.
“It was tough but I managed to pull it off. He was returning almost every shot and that made things difficult but eventually I found my rhythm to get the better of him,” said Yew Ming.
Karosi, on his debut here, has never played against Yew Ming but has seen the veteran on court a few times.
“He has tons of experience and I hope to be at my best tomorrow. Things have got tougher since the quarterfinals and I certainly can’t take things lightly,” said Karosi.
Semifinals (Malaysia unless stated)
Men’s singles: Austin Karosi (Singapore) bt Syed Mohd Agil Syed Naguib 6-2, 6-0; Si Yew Ming bt Abdul Hazli Zainuddin 6-4, 7-5.
Women’s singles: Theviya Selvarajoo bt Aslina Chua 3-6, 6-4, 6-1; Yus SyazlinNabila Yusri bt Alyssa Boey 6-1, 6-4.
Women’s doubles: Aslina Chua-Thviya Selvarajoo bt Michelle Khoo Li Sha-Yus Syazlin Nabila Yusri 6-2, 6-1; Alyssa boey-Nurin Nabilah bt Siti Aisyah Idris-Rose Shamiza Badrul Hisham 6-3, 6-1. - www.sports247.my
