KUALA LUMPUR: Boys' singles Ayu Fu Sheng and girls' singles Eng Ler Qi were the only Malaysian casualties on the opening day of the World Junior Championships in Nanchang, China, on Monday.
Fu Sheng battled hard against 14th seed Simone Piccinin of Italy before losing 14-21, 21-19, 24-22 in a gruelling 55-minute contest.
However, his compatriots Faiq Haziq, Sng Wei Ming and Kong Zhou Swin successfully advanced to the second round.
Ler Qi, seeded 16th, suffered a crushing 21-10, 21-6 defeat in 37 minutes at the hands of Hong Kong's Wong Yi, while the rest of the Malaysian girls' singles players sailed through with little trouble.
Compatriot Ong Xin Yee, eased into the second round with a comfortable 21-16, 21-6 victory over Sithuli Ranasinghe of Sri Lanka.
Oo Shan Zi and Lim Zhi Shin also booked their places in the next round.
National junior coach Jeffer Rosobin was disappointment that Fu Sheng and Ler Qi couldn't progress further.
"Fu Sheng gave it everything and came close to winning but was unfortunate in the deciding game.
"Ler Qi also started well but couldn't maintain her momentum. It's a pity that both couldn't make it past the first round," said Jeffer.
"The others performed well, but it's early days in the tournament. I hope they can remain consistent because it's going to be a long competition."
The individual events feature a 128-player draw, with four rounds to clear before reaching the quarter-finals.
Boys' doubles Aaron Tai-Khang Khai Xng, who are the nation's best title hopes, will start their campaign on Tuesday.
RESULTS
First round
(Malaysians unless seeded)
Boys' singles: Faiq Haziq bt Xu Zicheng (US) 21-7, 21-13; Sng Wei Ming bt Jamal Rahmat Pandi (Phi) 21-17, 21-14; Kong Zhou Swin bt Jason Ou (Eng) 21-12, 21-19; Simone Piccinin (Ita) bt Ayu Fu Sheng 14-21, 21-19, 24-22.
Girls' singles: Ong Xin Yee bt Sithuli Ranasinghe (Sri) 21-16, 21-6; Oo Shan Zi bt Simone Huang (Can) 21-14 21-8; Lim Zhi Shin bt Mina Korssund (Nor) 21-8, 21-9; Wong Yi (HK) bt Eng Ler Qi 21-10, 21-6.
Mixed doubles: Loh Ziheng-Clarissa San bt Jaden Mingoa-Josephine Zhao (NZ) 21-11, 21-10; Wee Yee Tern-Nicole Tan bt Edward Patai-Tuaine Niholas-Herman (Cook Islands) 21-7, 21-2; Datu Anif Isaac Datu Asrah-Dania Sofea Zaidi bt Robert Nebel-Jasmine Wilis (Den) 19-21, 21-12, 21-9; Tan Zhi Yang-Noraqilah Maisarah bt Casper Spaans-Inger Pothuizen (Ned) 21-12, 21-6.