An in-form Ng Ka Long Angus ended Lee Zii Jia’s title defence in the Badminton Asia Championships first round yesterday.
Ng, the German Open champion last month, sealed a 21-19 21-16 win in 39 minutes. It’s his second consecutive victory over the third seed, after the 16-21 22-20 21-13 result in the Indonesia Masters second round in January.
After a damp 2022, Ng has had an uptick in fortunes this season, finishing runner-up at the Thailand Masters in January before his triumph in Mulheim. He next faces Kanta Tsuneyama, whom he also defeated in Jakarta three months ago.
Hong Kong China proved the bane for Malaysian men’s singles in Dubai as their other hope Ng Tze Yong succumbed 21-17 21-18 to Lee Cheuk Yiu.
World champions Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik, however, improved the mood late in the day by coming through a one-hour stiff test against Leo Rolly Carnando/Daniel Marthin 19-21 21-19 22-20. Waiting for them in the second round are Tokyo 2020 gold medallists Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin, who won 21-10 21-16 against Keiichiro Matsui/Yoshinori Takeuchi.
In another marque men’s singles match, Loh Kean Yew was dominant in the battle against Lakshya Sen, winning 21-7 23-21 in 37 minutes.
“Disappointed with the way I played the first game. Against someone like Loh, who plays at such a high pace, you must be prepared from the start,” Sen later told reporters.
Seeds out
- Women’s doubles second seeds Nami Matsuyama/Chiharu Shida crashed 21-9 21-11 to Lee So Hee/Baek Ha Na.
- Fifth seeds Apriyani Rahayu/Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti were on court for only 35 minutes in their 21-18 21-11 loss to Benyapa and Nuntakarn Aimsaard.
NOTEWORTHY
- Shi Yu Qi received a free pass to the second round after men’s singles top seed Jonatan Christie pulled out unwell.
- Li Shi Feng and Kunlavut Vitidsarn set up a mouthwatering duel following their straight games wins over Jeon Hyeok Jin and Viren Nettasinghe respectively.
→ Results (Day 2)
→ Order of play (Day 3)
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