Malaysia’s hopes of ending a long wait for a women’s team badminton medal came to an end after South Korea secured a 3-1 victory in the quarter-finals in Ichinomiya City.
The Malaysian team faced a difficult challenge against one of the tournament’s strongest sides and found themselves behind early after world No. 1 An Se Young defeated K. Letshanaa 21-12, 21-8 in the opening singles.
Malaysia responded strongly through Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah, who produced one of their standout performances of the year. The world No. 5 pair defeated reigning world champions Baek Ha Na and Lee So Hee 22-20, 21-17 to level the tie at 1-1.
The victory gave Malaysia renewed hope, but South Korea’s depth proved decisive in the remaining matches.
Wong Ling Ching was next on court against world No. 12 Kim Ga Eun, but the Malaysian was unable to overcome her more experienced opponent. Kim secured a 21-12, 21-18 victory to put South Korea within one match of winning the tie.
Malaysia then turned to scratch pairing Cheng Su Yin and Low Zi Yu in the second doubles rubber. Despite being up against Jeong Na Eun and Kim Hye Jeong, the Malaysians fought until the final point in a closely contested encounter.
Cheng and Low took the opening game 21-18 before South Korea levelled the match with a 21-11 win in the second. The deciding game went down to the wire, with Jeong and Kim eventually edging it 24-22 to seal South Korea’s 3-1 victory.
The defeat ended Malaysia’s campaign and extended the team’s wait for a medal in the event. Malaysia’s last women’s team podium finish came at the 1962 Jakarta Games, when the team won silver.
While the result ended another medal opportunity, Malaysia’s performance also highlighted the quality within its squad. Pearly and Thinaah’s victory over the reigning world champions was a major highlight, while the fight shown by Cheng and Low in the deciding doubles rubber provided another positive from a difficult quarter-final.
For now, however, the search for a women’s team medal continues.
