PETALING JAYA: Malaysia's boys' quartet signalled their golden intent after finishing the opening block of the team event on top of the standings at the Asian Youth Tenpin Bowling Championships today.

The combination of Aiman Syahin Sulaiman, Ethan Damien Goh, Danial Abu Samah and Wan Zarif Ikram Wan Mazlan tallied 2,635 pinfalls across 12 games to seize the early advantage at Sunway Mega Lanes.

They lead arch-rivals South Korea (2,571) and Kuwait (2,511), with the second and final block to come tomorrow.

It was Aiman once again leading from the front, fresh from his doubles gold on Saturday, as the hosts put themselves within striking distance of another title.

The girls' team, comprising Qurratu'ain Izdihar Pozi, Nurul Anis Nabila Nizam, Adelia Nur Irwan Syazalee and Adania Mohd Redzwan, also kept themselves in the medal hunt by finishing third on 2,308 pinfalls.

Singapore lead the way with 2,494, followed by South Korea on 2,460.

While the gap to the frontrunners remains, the Malaysians are still well within range should they sharpen up in the second block.

Beyond the team event, the All-Events standings — which aggregate scores from singles, doubles and team — also put Malaysia in a strong position for more medals.

In the boys' division, Aiman sits top of the leaderboard with 3,487 pinfalls after 15 games, ahead of Kuwait's Hassan Qasem (3,451) and Korea's Bae Jung Hun (3,423).

Should he maintain his form through Monday's second block, the national team debutant could well deliver another gold.

Teammate Danial (3,107) also holds 16th spot, ensuring two Malaysians are inside the Masters finals cut.

In the girls' division, four Malaysians are inside the top 16.

Adania (seventh, 3,097), Nurul Anis (eighth, 3,091) and Adelia (10th, 3,065) are all well-placed to challenge for the Masters, while Qurratu'ain (16th, 2,874) just squeezed in to keep her hopes alive.