The brilliant run finally came to an end in the final of the mixed doubles at the Yonex World Championships at Wembley.

But for Scotland’s Imogen Bankier and England’s Chris Adcock the silver medal was a huge building block.

The unheralded British pair had knocked out the eighth, 15th, fourth and second seeds on the way to yesterday’s final showdown but couldn’t quite pull off the greatest of all giant-killing acts against the top seeds, Nan Zhang and Yunlei Zhao. The world No.1 couple claimed gold 21-15, 21-7 to complete a Chinese clean sweep of all five titles.

But the great week’s work means that Glasgow’s Bankier and 22-year-old Adcock are ready to make a surge up the rankings from their current world No.20 status and they have well and truly thrown down the gauntlet to Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork, ranked No.8 in the world, in the bid to represent Team GB at next year’s Olympic Games.

For Bankier, it was a place in history as the first Scot to reach a World Championship final – and such a well-earned reward for the 23-year-old who dropped out of a degree in law four years ago in order to become a full-time player and pursue her badminton dream.

“It was disappointing to lose the final,” said Bankier. “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 dropped only one game on the way to the final, and the opening stages of the deciding match gave the massed home support great cause for optimism. The British players were tied 15-all in the first game but dropped six points in a row to lose it in 18 minutes.

In the second game, there was a slight feeling that the bubble had finally burst, the level of intensity dropped and the steam finally ran out of the home challenge.

For Badminton Scotland, it was a brilliant result and a perfect way to mark the 100th anniversary season.

“We are so proud of Imogen and Chris,” said Gareth McKenna, Scotland’s performance manager. “This is a great result for Scottish and English badminton and a real shot in the arm for the GB programme.

“I know they will be disappointed today, but when they look back on the week there are so many positives.”

Anne Smillie, the chief executive of Badminton Scotland, added: “This has been such a great week for our sport. Imogen and Chris have proved that they are a world-class mixed couple and, with the Olympics just a year away, it is a huge boost.”

It has been a rapid rise to stardom. A year ago, Bankier and Adcock had never played together but they tentatively joined forces in September, and the partnership’s potential was made crystal clear when they won the Bank of Scotland Scottish International Championship at the Kelvin Hall in Glasgow in November.

Unsung in Britain, the pair that took on the might of Asia and only fell at the final hurdle were looking forward to a little taste of life in the limelight today with a television appearance on BBC Breakfast.