TheStar Feb 19 PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian men's team edged Indonesia 3-2 to qualify for the final in the Thomas Cup Asian Zone qualifying tournament in Jaipur, India last night. Kuan Beng Hong delivered the winning point for Malaysia when he defeated Simon Santoso 24-22, 14-21, 21-17 in the third singles in the semi-final played at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium last night. Malaysia had earlier picked up two points from their two singles ties through Lee Chong Wei who beat Olympic and world champion Taufik Hidayat 21-13, 21-19 while Mohd Hafiz Hashim defeated Sony Dwi Kuncoro 21-10, 21-9. Indonesia drew level through their doubles with Luluk Hadiyanto-Yulianto Alvent beating Chan Chong Ming-Koo Kien Keat 21-16, 14-21, 21-16 and Markis Kido-Hendra Setiawan defeating Lin Woon Fui-Mohd Tazari Fairuzuan 21-13, 21-17. Malaysia will play South Korea in the final today. The Koreans had earlier defeated India 3-0 in the semi-finals. The four semi-finalists have all qualified for the Thomas Cup Finals in Japan from April 28-May 7. Meanwhile, the Malaysian women players failed in their bid to qualify for their second consecutive Uber Cup Finals on merit. They could only finish fifth in the qualifying tournament after picking up a consolation 3-2 win over India in the classification matches played yesterday. On Friday, the Malaysians went down fighting 1-4 to top seeds South Korea. The defeat came just a day after they stunned Indonesia to keep their slim hopes of qualifying alive. On Friday, Wong Mew Choo gave Malaysia a bright start when she upset Seo Yoon-ye 16-21, 21-12, 21-17 but the rest of the ties went South Korea's way. Lee Kyung-won-Lee Hyo-jung beat Wong Pei Tty-Chin Eei Hui 16-21, 19-21 and Lee Yun-hwa defeated Julia Wong 12-21, 24-22, 16-21. Hwang Yu-mi-Ha Jung-eun edged scratch pair Mooi Hing Yau-Fong Chew Yen 13-21, 21-10, 10-21 and Jun Jae-youn wrapped up the tie with a 21-12, 21-14 win over Norsyahliza Baharum. Taiwan, who lost 2-3 to Indonesia yesterday, made the cut for the Finals together with Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea. RESULTS THOMAS CUP Group B: Indonesia bt Thailand 3-2. Fifth-eighth playoff: Thailand bt Pakistan 3-0, Taiwan bt Hong Kong 3-1 Fifth-sixth playoff: Thailand vs Taiwan Semi-finals: Malaysia bt Indonesia 3-2 (Lee Chong Wei bt Taufik Hidayat 21-13, 21-9; Mohd Hafiz Hashim bt Sony Dwi Kuncoro 21-10, 21-9; Kuan Beng Hong bt Simon Santoso 24-22, 14-21, 21-17; Chan Chong Ming-Koo Kien Keat lost to Luluk Hadiyanto-Yulianto Alvent 16-21, 21-14, 16-21; Lin Woon Fui-Mohd Tazari Fairuzuan lost to Markis Kido-Hendra Setiawan 13-21, 17-21); South Korea bt India 3-0. UBER CUP Group A: South Korea bt Malaysia 4-1 (Seo Yoon-hee lost to Wong Mew Choo 21-16, 21-12, 21-17; Lee Kyung-won-Lee Hyo-jung bt Chin Eei Hui-Wong Pei Tty 21-16, 21-19; Lee Yun-hwa bt Julia Wong 21-12, 22-24, 21-16; Hwang Yu-mi-Ha Jung-eun bt Mooi Hing Yau-Fong Chew Yen 21-13, 10-21, 21-10; Jun Jae-youn bt Norsyahliza Baharum 21-12, 21-14.) Group B: Thailand bt Hong Kong 5-0 Fifth-sixth playoff: Malaysia bt India 3-2 (Wong Mew Choo lost to Trupti Murgunde 17-21, 19-21; Julia Wong lost to Saina Nehwal 17-21, 10-21; Baharum Norshaliza bt Dekaraja Krishnan 22-20, 21-19; Wong Pei Tty-Chin Eei Hui bt Gutta Jawla-Kurian Shrutis 21-12, 21-13; Fong Chew Yen-Mooi Hing Yau bt Meenakshi Br-Balab Aparna 17-21, 21-12, 21-17) Semi-finals: South Korea vs Singapore, Taiwan vs Hong Kong
