Cairo, Oct 11 (IANS) China reaffirmed their dominance in junior badminton by defeating Malaysia in a gripping final to lift the BWF World Junior Team Championships 2026 title.

The Chinese team prevailed 55-46, 55-53, 55-45 in the three-game final, surviving a determined Malaysian fightback before regaining control in the deciding game to seal the championship.

With the triumph, China extended their record haul to 16 Suhandinata Cup titles.

The contest appeared to be heading towards a comfortable Chinese victory after they dominated the opening game. Malaysia, however, responded with renewed intensity in front of an enthusiastic crowd, turning the final into a closely fought encounter.

Tiew Wei Jie handed over the baton in the men’s singles at 18-22, leaving Malaysia’s doubles contingent with the task of keeping their title hopes alive. Genevie Lim and Low Zi Yu in women’s doubles, Irfan Shazmir and Genevie Lim in mixed doubles, and Shazmir and Ahmad Redzuan in men’s doubles rose to the occasion, helping Malaysia edge the second game 55-53 and force a decider.

With momentum shifting towards Malaysia, the deciding game offered an opportunity for an upset. However, China quickly re-established their authority, restricting Malaysia’s first two singles players to a combined nine points and opening up a substantial lead.

The Chinese team capitalised on that advantage with remarkable composure, keeping unforced errors to a minimum and preventing their opponents from mounting another recovery.

Women’s doubles pair Shi Si Chen and Wei Yue Yue, mixed doubles combination Feng Yi Lang and Li Meng Han, and men’s doubles duo Tu Yi Chen and Zheng Wei Gang played crucial roles in maintaining China’s control as the defending champions closed out the final.

China’s doubles coach Liu Cheng credited the team’s preparation and ability to respond to changing circumstances for their successful title defence.

“We’re happy to have won,” said doubles coach Liu Cheng. “We always prioritise team events and the whole team worked very hard for this. So winning this title means all our players are super players!

“We had to adapt to uncertainty, mainly in the doubles because it’s very fast. We trained the players’ adaptability, decision-making and problem-solving – not so much on the physical side, but with the adaptability.

“We noticed that when Malaysia played the second set they used a substitution, so we analysed it and we also substituted our men’s singles, and we got the result we wanted.

“It is our proudest moment to have our national anthem played while we are on the podium. Whenever we come to a competition, our goal is to win. So we are proud that we were able to achieve both objectives,” Cheng added.

For Malaysia, the narrow victory in the second game had raised hopes of an upset, but the early deficit in the decider proved difficult to overcome against a Chinese side renowned for its depth and consistency.

Low Zi Yu admitted that Malaysia’s failure to make a strong start in the final game ultimately proved costly, despite the confidence the team had gained from levelling the contest.

“In the second set we were always close, and so we could fight. We were never far behind. We got confident and more self-belief. In the third we didn’t start well and we trailed by a big margin. If we had to win, we had to chase a large score, and that’s difficult against China, because they are quite strong. This was a challenge for us, but we didn’t give up, we wanted to fight.

“Of course I wanted us to win the gold, and after winning the second set, I thought the gold was within reach. We gave it our all,” said Low.

--IANS

vi/bc