Russel Alexander Nasir Taib had no problems to reach the men's 200m semi-finals at the 2022 Commonwealth Games as he finished second in his preliminary heat on Thursday.

With the top two of each heat automatically going through, the 24-year-old clocked 21.13s, crossing the line only behind Kenya's Dan Kiviasi Asamba (20.76s).

However, he could face a tough challenge in Friday's semi-finals as he is grouped together with the likes of Englishman Zharnel Hughes, who set the fastest time among all with 20.30s, Trinidad and Tobago's Kyle Greaux (21.01s) and Canadian sprinter Brendon Rodney (20.84s).

Russel's best time in the 200m event, which is also the Malaysian record, is 20.77s.