Wet and wild challenge awaits mountain bikers in Langkawi

Portugal’s Sousa sends world No. 4 Ferrer packing in last eight

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will hold fond memories for Portugal’s Joao Sousa after he knocked out top seed and world number four David Ferrer of Spain at the Malaysian Open tennis championship yesterday.

Sousa recorded the biggest win of his career when he stunned Ferrer 6-2, 7-6 (7-6) in the quarter-finals at Juara Stadium in Bukit Jalil.

The Portuguese was denied a match point opportunity when he served for victory at 5-4 in the second set but he rallied superbly from a 4-6 deficit in the tie-break to prevail in 98 minutes.

The 24-year-old Sousa is in good form this month.

The right-hander is at a career high 77th in the world rankings this week after reaching his first ATP World Tour semi-final in St Petersburg last week, which earned him a special exemption to play in Kuala Lumpur.

And now he has beaten a world top five player, earning him a place in the semi-finals against Jurgen Melzer of Austria and is now in contention for a place in his first ATP World Tour final.

“I felt great. I think I played a great match.

“He did not play his best for sure today but sometimes you play good and sometimes you don’t.

“But I amreally happy to be in the semi-finals here.

“I felt confident and comfortable today. I did not let the pressure get to me when I made errors.

“It’s a big change in my mind and that was the key to victory,” said Sousa.

Fourth seed Melzer showed his determination to present his wife a memorable first wedding anniversary gift with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Federico Delbonis.

The Austrian broke serve three times as he clinched victory over the Argentinian in 79 minutes.

He will be looking to contest his third final of the year, having won his fifth title at the Winston-Salem Open and finishing runner-up at the PBZ Zagreb Indoors.

The three-time Grand Slam champion tied the knot with Czech Republic’s WTA Tour player Ivena Benesova a year ago.

Melzer, who is ranked 26th in the world, celebrated his first anniversary on Sept 14 and certainly will not find any better motivation than winning in Kuala Lumpur.

Fifth seed Julien Benneteau won an all-French clash with Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 6-3 to reach the semi-finals.

Benneteau converted five of 14 break points to claim victory in 82 minutes.

The 31-year-old is looking to reach the Kuala Lumpur final for the second year in a row, having finished runner-up last year to Spain’s Juan Monaco. LANGKAWI: Persistent rain on the eve of the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships threatened to turn today’s 81km race into a muddy affair.

Some of the world’s top mountain bike riders are in Langkawi for today’s qualifier, which offers ranking points and direct places for the World Mountain Bike Championships finals in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, next June.

A total of 88 men and 17 women riders, including 16 Malaysians, have confirmed their participation in the qualifier, which is being held for the first time in Asia.

The world championships qualifier will also act as a prologue to the six-stage 4th Langkawi International Mountain Bike Challenge (LIMBC), which begins on Monday.

German rider Steffen Thum of Team Ultra Rose, who is currently leading the world qualifiers rankings, relishes the challenge posed by the wet weather conditions.

“I had a look at the race track, and it is really slippery with plenty of mud after the rain,” said Thum.

“However, I amready for the challenge. My game plan is not to win the race, but to collect valuable ranking points to remain at the head of the list.”

In the women’s section, one of the pre-tournament favourites Mariske Strauss of South Africa is amazed at the difficulty level of the Langkawi race track.

“I only arrived from South Africa onThursday but I amalreadyamazed by the contrasting weather conditions,” said the Orange Monkey Team rider.

“It was extremely hot and dry on Thursday but today (yesterday), it is wet and cold.

“This difference will be reflected in the racing conditions and terrains.”

One notable absentee from today’s race will be last year’s LIMBC men’s champion Fabian Giger of Switzerland.

The Giant Pro X Team rider is in Langkawi, but has chosen to sit out today’s qualifier.

“I need some rest to recover after competing in two races in China last weekend.

“I hope to be fresh on Monday to start the first stage in my LIMBC title defence.

“The LIMBC is a tough and challenging race, and I hope to do my best against the many top riders who are here this year.”

The competition’s race co-ordinator Simon Burney predicts a unique race today.

“We have held a world championship qualifier in every other continent except Asia before this, and hosting a leg in Langkawi completes the jigsaw,” said Burney.

“I inspected the track and the guys who created it by clearing the jungle have done a good job under difficult conditions to get it ready for racing.

“It is wet today (Friday) but hopefully, the weather will be kinder to the riders on race day.”