Malaysia’s World No. 39 Justin Hoh pushed Japan’s World No. 19 Yushi Tanaka to the limit but eventually went down 21-17 20-22 21-11, giving Japan the early lead.

Malaysia’s World No. 18 pair Arif Junaid-Yap Roy King were unable to level the tie after falling to World No. 9 duo Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi in straight games, 21-14 21-12.

Japanese World No. 23 Koki Watanabe then sealed the tie, overcoming Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin 20-22 21-11 21-3 to send Japan into the semifinals.

This time around, Malaysia fielded a young squad as part of a long-term approach to provide exposure and valuable experience at the biennial Asian team tournament. The result means Malaysia’s men’s and women’s teams both conclude their campaigns at the quarterfinal stage of the Badminton Asia Team Championships (BATC) 2026.