The familiar sights of Kuala Lumpur’s skyline welcomed Jimmy Liong and Mia Athilla back home last week, but there’s barely time to settle in. After three intensive months training and competing across the United States as part of the UPA Asia Trailblazers program, Malaysia’s pickleball pioneers are already back on court – this time for the historic Panas Malaysia Open 2025, the inaugural PPA Tour Asia event.

For Liong, it was his dad who got him into the game. Now his academy work has become central to nurturing Malaysia’s next generation of pickleball talent, and the Trailblazers experience has only sharpened his vision for the sport’s potential in the region.

“I’m very excited to play in Malaysia because we have the best crowds,” he said.

Athilla is also ready to ignite the local scene. A Kuala Lumpur girl all her life, a decade-plus tennis background and sports science studies have shaped her analytical approach to the game. With unwavering family support behind her, she’s determined to prove pickleball’s professional viability in Asia.

Malaysia is emerging as a pickleball hotbed, riding the wave of the sport’s explosive growth throughout Asia. The timing couldn’t be more perfect. Having Liong and Athilla return from their American training stint just as PPA Tour Asia launches its first-ever event on Malaysian soil creates a compelling full-circle moment. 

“I want to show that pickleball is not just fun sports and that it can be a sport that you can make a living from in Asia,” she explained. Her broader goal? “Gaining experience, wins, and putting Malaysia on the map.”

For Athilla, though, it’s also deeply personal.

“My family is here. My friends are here. Everybody that I love is here, and I just want to make them proud,” she said.

With homegrown talent like Liong and Athilla on the rise leading the charge, Malaysia is positioning itself at the forefront of this exciting new chapter in professional pickleball. From honing their professional game abroad to now showcasing those skills at home, their journey is embodying the rapid evolution of Asian pickleball.