Malaysia’s campaign at the 2026 Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) in Ningbo, China has come to an end after all national representatives were eliminated in the quarter-finals.
In the last-eight stage held at the Ningbo Olympic Sports Centre on Friday, three Malaysian pairs failed to progress further after suffering defeats to their respective opponents.
Men’s doubles world No. 1 pair Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik saw their title defence come to a halt after a hard-fought 19-21, 28-26, 13-21 loss to South Korea’s Kang Min Hyuk and Ki Dong Ju.
Despite pushing their opponents in a tightly contested match, the Malaysian duo were ultimately outplayed by a more consistent and aggressive Korean side.
National doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky praised the opposition’s performance, noting their ability to minimise unforced errors while maintaining pressure throughout the match.
He also acknowledged that women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah were below their usual standards, as they fell 13-21, 15-21 to China’s Li Yi Jing and Luo Xu Min.
Despite entering the tournament as second seeds and world No. 2, the duo struggled with consistency and made several unforced errors, particularly in the second game.
Rexy said their usually strong rotational play and attacking rhythm were missing in this tournament, which contributed to their early exit.
Meanwhile, the defeat of mixed doubles world champions Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei to South Korea’s Kim Jae Hyeon and Jang Ha Jeong was described as a surprise, with Rexy noting that the pair were far from their best performance on court.
