Legend David wins squash gold on birthday

JAJARTA: Malaysian squash legend Nicol David celebrated her 35th birthday in style on Sunday as she won a record-extending fifth gold medal at the Asian Games.

The former long-time world number one grittily came from behind in the fifth set to beat 19-year-old compatriot Sivasangari Subramaniam 11-13, 11-9, 5-11, 11-6, 11-8 in Jakarta. It added to David’s near-flawless record at the regional Olympics, where she has lost only once in six visits since her debut in 1998 -- the 2002 final against Hong Kong’s Rebecca Chiu.

David stunned the world of squash when she won her first Asian Games gold as a 14-year-old in 1998, and went on to spend a record 108 months as world number one from August 2006 to September 2015. But Jakarta looks likely to be the final Asian Games for the Penang native, who said this year’s Commonwealth Games were probably her last after she lost in the semi-finals.