Badminton: Silver will spur Bankier on for 2012

SCOTLAND'S Imogen Bankier and England's Chris Adcock claimed the silver medal at the world badminton championships at Wembley - their quest for mixed doubles gold sadly ending in defeat at the hands of the world No.1 pairing.

Unseeded, the Bank of Scotland Scottish International Champions had swept past the eighth, 15th, fourth and second seeds on the way to the final. But China's top seeds, Nan Zhang and Yumlei Zhao, took charge with a 21-15 21-7 victory.

Despite the defeat, Bankier, 23, and Adcock, 22, have confirmed they can take on the world's best. Currently ranked No.18 in the world, they now face a race against England's Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork, ranked eighth, in the bid to represent Team GB at next year's Olympic Games which also take place at the Wembley Arena.

For Bankier, it was a place in history as she is the first Scottish player to reach a World Championship final. "It was disappointing to lose," she admitted. "But they stepped up their game and are very experienced. On the day, they were better than us.

"But this is a terrific experience on a world stage. To play so well at Wembley is really good for our confidence. The atmosphere was electric and, hopefully, all the GB players will now up their training and it will be a good Olympic year.

"We hope to go one better in 12 months' time (and win the gold medal). It's a silver medal and a stepping stone to London 2012."

Bankier and Adcock had dropped only one game on the way to the final, and the opening stages of the final gave the massed home support great cause for optimism.

The British stars were tied at 15-all in the first game but then dropped six points in a row, and it proved to be a decisive burst.