Junior Badminton Champion Low Zi Yu Focuses on Present, Defers Senior Career Plans

Malaysian junior mixed doubles player Low Zi Yu, at 16, is keeping his feet on the ground despite winning the Asian Junior Badminton Championships. He is not rushing to follow in the footsteps of senior national pair Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei onto the senior badminton stage.

Instead, Zi Yu is prioritizing his development with his women's doubles partner, Noraqilah Maisarah Ramdan. He stated that any decisions about a future in mixed doubles will be left to the coaching staff. "I haven't thought about that yet because I don't even know if we will play in senior tournaments, and it all depends on the coaches' plans. For now, I just want to focus on women's doubles with Aqilah first," he said upon returning to Malaysia.

Zi Yu and Ahmad Redzuan Zulwaqqarizal ended Malaysia's 19-year wait for the mixed doubles title at the championships in Yatsushiro, Japan. They beat China's Zheng Wei Gang and Li Meng Han 21-15, 22-20 in the final. Zi Yu credited the coaching team, led by Hazwan Jamaluddin and Doubles Coaching Director Rexy Mainaky, for their crucial role in helping the pair overcome pressure in the second set.

“

I haven't thought about that yet because I don't even know if we will play in senior tournaments, and it all depends on the coaches' plans. For now, I just want to focus on women's doubles with Aqilah first.

He explained that tactical adjustments made during the interval successfully changed the game's momentum after they made several errors early in the set. "I think the coaches helped a lot because when we made many mistakes or used the wrong strategy, they always provided guidance from the sidelines. In the second set, we played the wrong way initially, but after the interval and the coaches changed the strategy, our pattern of play changed," Zi Yu added.

Following this historic victory, Zi Yu will shift his focus to the Taiwan Open later this month with Noraqilah. Ahmad Redzuan will compete in the Malaysia Junior International Championship. Both players are concentrating on their performance without setting excessively high targets.

“

I think the coaches helped a lot because when we made many mistakes or used the wrong strategy, they always provided guidance from the sidelines. In the second set, we played the wrong way initially, but after the interval and the coaches changed the strategy, our pattern of play changed.