Aichi-Nagoya:Muhammad Zulkifli Abd Razak's final appearance at the Asian Games marked a historic moment as he led Malaysia to victory in the men's team regu sepak takraw event, ending a 36-year wait for gold. Better known as Sobey, Zulkifli was overwhelmed with emotion after defeating Thailand 2-0 in the final at Paloma Mizuho Arena.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Zulkifli expressed his gratitude for breaking the long-standing record and acknowledged that this would be his last Asian Games. He shared that the realization of his journey's end made the victory even more significant.

Zulkifli reflected on the match, stating that the success was a result of divine will and a blessing from God, which helped propel Malaysia to end its gold drought in the event. The victory served as a personal and emotional conclusion to his career on Asia's premier sporting stage.

Malaysia's previous gold in the men's team regu event was achieved in 1990 in Beijing, also against Thailand. In addition to their recent triumph, Malaysia nearly secured another gold in the inter-regu event but ultimately faced a 0-2 defeat to their rivals in the final.