Former co-captain Datu Anif Isaac Datu Asrah and Nuraqilah Maisarah Ramdan from the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) scorched the court here at the Pahang BA Badminton Hall in Kuantan to make the Second Round of the Second Leg, Mixed Doubles BAM National U21 Championships 2026.
The pair of 19-year-olds, who led the squad at last year’s Badminton Asia Junior Championships (BAJC) in Indonesia, took a mere 15 minutes for their debut appearance at this year’s meet to swat off the challenge of Heng Zi Hin (from Negeri Sembilan) and Christine Lam Mei He (Penang).
Ranked 5th/8th, Datu Anif and Nuraqilah recorded the 15-9, 15-9 win for a place in the next round, where they will face Daniel Tan Ying Enn (Johor) and Vashnika Gopinath (Putrajaya) tomorrow.
Daniel-Vashnika did not even break a sweat today after receiving a walkover from Terengganu’s Doni Muhammad Razin Aqeef-Siti Nuraminah Abdullah.
With top seed Wee Yee Tern-Tan Zhing Hui from BAM gaining a bye on the first day of competition today, second seeded pair of Goh Shu Xuan (from Negeri Sembilan) and Lee Jia Qi (Selangor) were made to work for their spot in the next round.
Up against the Penang duo of Muhamad Adam Haris Muhamad Safarol and Giovanna Koay Yi Shyuan, it was a three-set battle decider that finally saw the progress of Shu Xuan-Jia Qi with a scoreline of 12-15, 15-13, 15-4.
Shu Xuan-Jia Qi’s opponents tomorrow are Kieshen Sai Rao Nyanaprakash Rao and Lau Xin En from Kedah, who overcame BAM’s Saufi Muhammad Fakhrul Hakim-Auni Fatihin Azuan 15-12, 15-12.
