KUALA LUMPUR: A new star has emerged in Malaysian badminton as Low Zi Yu made history today, becoming the youngest shuttler to reach a World Junior Championships final.

At just 14 years and 72 days old, Zi Yu shattered the previous record held by Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon, who was 14 years and 269 days when she made the 2009 girls' singles final in Alor Star.

Zi Yu, alongside her partner Dania Sofea Zaidi, caused a major upset by defeating China's top seeds Chen Fan Shu Tian and Liu Jia Yue, advancing to the girls' doubles final in Nanchang.

The unseeded Malaysian pair staged a remarkable comeback, winning 16-21, 21-16, 21-17 in an intense 71-minute match.

This victory is especially impressive given that 17-year-old Dania and 14-year-old Zi Yu, both from Johor, are competing in their first major junior tournament.

The last Malaysian pair to make the girls' doubles final at the World Juniors was Pearly Tan and Toh Ee Wei, who claimed silver in 2018.

Earlier, Dania and Zi Yu defeated fellow Malaysians Ong Xin Yi and Carmen Ting, this year’s Asian Junior bronze medalists, in the quarter-finals.

"We were really nervous when our opponents started catching up, but we kept reminding ourselves to stay focused and avoid simple errors," Zi Yu told the Badminton World Federation.

"Even though they were strong, we just played our usual game."

Dania expressed her excitement over their successful attacking strategy.

"We stayed aggressive and kept smashing to keep the pressure on the Chinese pair. After losing the first game, we increased our tempo and managed to force a decider."

"We were both excited and nervous when we took a big lead in the final game, but I’m so happy we held on for the win."

"This is our first World Juniors, and we can’t wait for the final."

Dania and Zi Yu will face Japan’s Ririna Hiramoto and Aya Tamaki in the final tomorrow. The Japanese duo won their semi-final against Indonesia’s Ishana Syahira Meida and Rinjani Kwinara Nastine 23-21, 21-19.

For context, the last Malaysian world junior champion was Goh Jin Wei, who won the girls' singles title in 2018.