PETALING JAYA: After two successive silvers, Low Zi Yu has finally struck gold – and made Malaysian badminton history in the process.
The 16-year-old and new partner Genevie Lim, 18, became the first Malaysian pair to win the girls’ doubles title at the World Junior Championships since the tournament began in 1992.
The second seeds fought back after dropping the second game to beat Japan’s Nijika Kamata-Shizuku Kashio 15-7, 9-15, 15-12 in a 45-minute final at the Cairo International Stadium yesterday.
The triumph was especially sweet for Zi Yu, who finished runner-up in the previous two editions – with Noraqilah Maisarah Ramdan in 2025 and Dania Sofea Zaidi in 2024.
This time, Genevie proved the ideal partner as the pair held their nerve in the decider to seal a breakthrough victory.
Before their triumph, Malaysia’s best girls’ doubles result at the championships was a runner-up finish by Pearly Tan-Toh Ee Wei in 2018 in Markham.
FINAL RESULTS
Boy’s singles: Radithya Bayu (Ina) bt Fardhan Rainada (Ina) 15-9, 11-15, 15-8.
Girl’s singles: Zhang Yixin (Chn) bt Saki Matsumoto (Jpn) 9-15, 15-10, 15-9.
Girl’s doubles: Low Zi Yu-Genevie Lim (Mas) bt Nijika Kamata-Shizuku Kashio (Jpn) 15-7, 9-15, 15-12.
Mixed doubles: Luthfi Habibi-Dian Ramadhani (Ina) bt Feng Yilang-Li Menghan (Chn) 17-15, 8-15, 16-14.
