The Badminton Asia Junior Mixed Team Championships 2024 got underway today with underdogs Chinese Taipei registering an upset win over former champion Thailand on the opening day of the competition. The 2019 champion were humbled 4-1 by Chinese Taipei with the winning point delivered by men’s singles shuttler Su Wei-Cheng who put up a commanding display to outclass current world Junior No.2 Patcharakit Apiratchataset in a close 21-17, 17-21, 23-21 win. Men’s doubles pair Chiu Shao Hua/Lai Po Yu had earlier opened up a 1-0 lead after downing Sittisak Nadee/Chayapot Piboon 21-14, 21-15 before Wang Pei Yu widened the gap with a 21-13, 21-12 win over Sarunrak Vitidsarn. In Group B, Malaysia got off to a formidable start after thumping Macau China 5-0 with men’s singles shuttler Muhammad Faiq confirming Malaysia’s opening tie victory. Men’s doubles top-ranked pair Kang Khai Xing/Aaron Tai prevailed over Chio Chi Seng/Ou Ka Hou 21-10, 21-12 in the first tie while Malaysia’s top women junior player Siti Zulaikha did not disappoint with a 21-14, 21-10 win over Chan Hao Wai. Meanwhile, host Indonesia, chasing their first title since 2006, also registered a 5-0 victory over the Philippines. Bismo Raya Oktora dropped a game but bounced back to beat Jamal Rahmat Pandi 22-20, 13-21, 21-19 to deliver the first point before 2023 Asian Junior champion Mutiara Ayu Puspitasari followed suit with a comfortable 21-16, 21-13 win over Christel Rei Fuentespina. Multiple champion China, gunning for the champions’ podium after last winning the title in 2018, are also at the top in Group D after a 5-0 victory over Hong Kong in the opening group tie. In the other ties, the United Arab Emirates sealed their opening day feat with a 5-0 victory over Kazakhstan. At the same time, team captain Tanvi Sharma secured the winning point to steer India with a win over Vietnam to share the top spot with Indonesia. Japan also got off to a good start after beating Singapore 4-1 in the other Group D match. The Badminton Asia Junior mixed team tournament, featuring 15 teams, runs until July 2 with the individual tournament following soon after from July 3-7 at the Gor Among Raga Hall. GROUP A:Chinese Taipei bt Thailand 4-1 GROUP B:Malaysia bt Macau 5-0UAE vs Kazakhstan 5-0 GROUP CIndonesia bt Philippines 5-0India bt Vietnam GROUP DChina bt Hong Kong China 5-0Japan bt Singapore 4-1 For more information and results, follow:https://bwf.tournamentsoftware.com/sport/tournament.aspx?id=ce2679d2-3665-471d-bcc8-94f52a80e5be
