KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia ended their IBF World Cup campaign with two hard-earned team bronze medals after both national quartets narrowly missed out on the finals in Munich, Germany, today.
The defending men's champions fell 3-2 to Australia, while the women's team suffered an equally heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to arch-rivals Singapore, with both semi-final encounters going down to the deciding fifth game.
Despite missing out on gold, Malaysia could take pride in being one of only two nations, alongside the United States, to reach the semi-finals in both team events.
The double bronze brought Malaysia's medal haul to three, following Natasha Roslan's silver in the women's singles on Sunday.
Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Congress (MTBC) secretary-general Maradona Chok said there was plenty to be proud of despite the disappointment.
"Of course, we wanted to go all the way, especially with both teams reaching the semi-finals. But to come away with three medals and have both our teams among the world's top four is still a very encouraging achievement," said Maradona.
The men's quartet of Rafiq Ismail, Timmy Tan, Tun Hakim Tun Hasnul Azam and Ahmad Muaz Fishol came agonisingly close to defending the historic crown they captured in Hong Kong last year.
They made a strong start against Australia, winning the opening game 224-192 before their opponents drew level with a 206-175 victory.
Malaysia regained the advantage by taking the third 217-164, but the Australians responded 195-168 before producing a commanding 275-194 in the decider.
Despite relinquishing their crown, the quartet could take heart from an impressive recovery after winning just two of their opening six qualifying matches.
They reeled off five consecutive victories to reach the knockout stage before defeating Qatar 3-1 in the last 16 and Canada 3-2 in the quarter-finals.
"The boys deserve a lot of credit. They had a difficult start, but showed tremendous character to fight their way back and reach the semi-finals. They gave everything they had in trying to defend the title," said Maradona.
The women's quartet of Natasha, Sin Li Jane, Adelia Nur Irwan Syazalee and Nur Hazirah Ramli also showed tremendous resilience in their semi-final against Singapore.
Trailing 2-0 after losing the opening games 236-203, 211-200, the Malaysians fought back superbly to win the next two 259-215, 194-180.
However, Singapore held their nerve to clinch the decider 191-174, denying Malaysia a second consecutive women's team final appearance.
Earlier, the national women had survived another five-game thriller to beat Australia 3-2 in the last 16 before sweeping aside Greece 3-0 in the quarter-finals.
"The girls showed great determination too. Coming back from two games down against Singapore says a lot about their fighting spirit. It was disappointing to fall just short, but they can hold their heads high," said Maradona.
Interestingly, even the US, boasting a formidable line-up of Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) and Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour stars, missed out on both finals.
Their men's team lost 3-1 to France, while the women fell 3-2 to Denmark.
Malaysia had enjoyed a historic campaign at last year's World Cup in Hong Kong, returning with two golds and two silvers.
Natasha captured the women's singles crown, while the men's quartet claimed a maiden team gold. Rafiq added a men's singles silver, with the women's team also finishing runners-up.
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