Malaysian shuttlers Ahmad Redzuan Zulwaqqarizal and Isyraf Hafizin Ibrahim are aiming to secure a medal at the World Junior Championships, which begin Tuesday in Cairo. The boys’ doubles pair have been intensively preparing in recent weeks with the goal of returning Malaysia to the podium after missing out at last year’s tournament in Guwahati, India.

Redzuan and Isyraf are currently ranked third in the world in the junior boys’ doubles category. The duo is seeking to build on Malaysia’s recent junior doubles success, which included a title win in 2023 at Nanchang by Aaron Tai and Kang Khai Xing, and a bronze medal at the 2024 event in Spokane shared by Aaron alongside Bryan Jeremy Goonting.

Despite their ambitions, the pair emphasized managing expectations ahead of the tournament. “We will try our best to win the title and bring home a medal, but we don’t want to think too much about becoming champions because we don’t want to put too much pressure on ourselves,” Redzuan said. Isyraf added, “I think we are in very good condition and we will do our best at the World Championships.”

The Cairo championships represent an opportunity for the pair to rebound after an earlier setback at the Asian Junior Championships in July in Yatsushiro, Japan. Entering that competition as the second seed, Redzuan and Isyraf were eliminated in the third round.

The Malaysian contingent, including the duo and 28 other players and officials, departed early yesterday for the Egyptian capital. The championships commence with a team event using a revised relay scoring system. Each match in the team event will be decided over the best of three sets, with each set played to 55 points. From October 11-17, the individual competition will continue with the 3x15 scoring format consistent with the previous edition.