Malaysia settle for team bronze at Badminton Asia Junior Championships

Malaysia finished with a bronze medal in the team event at the 2018 Badminton Asia Junior Championships after losing 0-3 to Japan in the semi-finals on Monday in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Mixed doubles pair Chia Wei Jie and Toh Ee Wei lost 16-21, 15-21 to Hiroki Midorikawa and Natsu Saito in the first game before Ng Tze Yong lost a close game 13-21, 25-23, 22-24 to Taiki Kato in the boys' singles.

Midorikawa returned to the court for the third game to pair with Hiroki Nakayama and seal Malaysia's defeat by overcoming Chang Yee Jun and Chua Yue Chern 21-17, 21-14.

The result meant Malaysia finished third for the second year running, having also crashed out in the semi-finals last year, while Japan would face China in the final on Tuesday.

Despite the defeat, there was a bright side at the tournament for the junior shuttlers, who managed to record a stunning 3-2 upset win over defending champions South Korea in the quarter-finals earlier in the day.

The Malaysian juniors would next embark on individual events at the tournament on Wednesday.

In last year's edition, Leong Jun Hao was Malaysia's sole medalist in non-team events as he beat Bai Yupeng in the boys' singles final.