Moh Zaki Ubaidullah stuns top seeded Christo Popov (Photo PBSI)
Top seeded players including Frenchman Christo Popov in the men’s singles, Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto pf Japan in the women’s singles and the men’s doubles pair of Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae of Korea have all crashed out of the Kumamoto Masters Japan.
World No 1 Popov failed to book a place in the men’s singles quarter-finals after failing to get past Indonesian Moh Zaki Ubaidullah. For the first time in three meetings, Popov was beaten by his 26th ranked Indonesian opponent 15-21, 15-21.
Moh Zaki will now take on teammate and sixth seeded teammate Alwi Farhan in the quarter-finals tomorrow.
Also crashing out was fourth seeded Victor Lai. The newly crowned Korean Open champion, ranked fourth in the world, tumbled out 16-21, 19-21 to Japan’s Yushi Tanaka, ranked 13 rungs below his rival.
Yushi will now play eight seeded Indian veteran Lakshya Sen in the quarter-finals. Lakshya is joined in the last eight by another Indian veteran Kidambi Srikanth. Kidambi turned back the clock with a hard-earned 21-15, 11-21, 21-18 upset victory over Japan’s Kodai Naraoka, the fifth seed.
Kidambi will take on another giant-killer Koki Watanabe of Japan in the last eight. The unseeded Watanabe stunned third seeded Taiwanese Chou Tien Chen 24-22, 21-19.
In the women’s singles Thailand’s seasoned campaigner Ratchanok Intanon saw her charge coming to an early end. The third seed was beaten 15-21, 19-21 by Taiwanese Lin Hsiang Ti.
Third seeded Chen Yufei of China was lucky to move into the quarter-finals after surviving close battle in the second round against Bulgarian Kaloyana Nalbantova. Yufei barely scrapped through 21-17, 19-21, 22-20 to book her quarter-final spot.
Korean men’s doubles top seeds Won-ho-SAeung-jae, coming into the tournament after having won the Korean Open last week, were shown the exit by their less illustrious teammates Jin Yong-Jo-Song-hyun, who clinched the match 21-19, 21-15.
Also being shown the exits were two Malaysian seeded pairs. Fourth seeded Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin bowed out tamely 14-21, 15-21 to fellow Malaysians Aaron Tai-Yap Roy King.
Also shown the way out were eight seeds Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun. They lost their second round encounter 15-21, 18-21 to Denmark’s Daniel Lundgaard-Mads Vetergaard.
England’s Ben Lane-Sean Vendy are the sole seeded pairs left in the draw after they defeated Chen Zhiyi-Presley Smith of the USA 21-18, 21-15.
Top seeded Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto of Japan were also second round casualties in the women’s doubles. Korean’s Kim Hye-jeong-Lee Yeon-woo carbed out a 21-19, 21-18 second round win over the favourites.
There were several upsets in the mixed doubles competition as well.
Second seeded Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Supissara Paewsampran of Thailand were easily disposed off by Japan’s Akira Koga-Natsu Saito of Japan. The Japanese duo romped to a 21-15, 21-7 win to advance to the quarter-finals.
Third seeded Guo Xinwa-Chen Fanghuo were beaten 21-14, 16-21, 19-21 in an all Chinese second round tie by Gao Jiaxuan-Wu Mengying.
Indonesians Amri Syahnawi-Nita Violina Marwah, the sixth seed, also saw their progress cut short. Japan’s Yuta Watanabe-Maya Taguichi wore down the Indonesians 21-7, 11-21, 21-8 to book their quarter-final berth.
SECOND ROUND RESULTS
Men’s singles: Moh Zaki Ubaidillah (Ina) bt Christo Popov (Fra) 21-15, 21-19; Alwi Farhan (Ina) bt Kenta Nishimoto (Jpn) 21-13, 6-21, 21-11; Victor Lai (Can) bt Yushi Tanaka (Jpn) 21-16, 21-19; Lakshya Sen (Ind) bt Dong Tianyao (Chn) 21-8, 21-14; Kidambi Srikanth (Ind) bt Kodai Naraoka (Jpn) 21-15, 11-21, 21-18; Koki Watanabe (Jpn) bt Chou Tien Chen (Tpe) 24-22, 21-19; Toma Junior Popov (Fra) bt Wang Po-Wei (Tpe) 21-9, 21-18; Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Tha) bt Yeo Tae-bin (Kor) 21-19, 21-14
Men’s doubles: Jin Yong-Jo Song-hyun (Kor) bt Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae (Kor) 21-19, 21-15; Wang Chang-Xie Haonan (Chn) bt He Jiting-Ren Xiangyu (Chn) 18-21, 21-18, 21-13; Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi (Jpn) bt Hariharan Amsakarunan-M.R. Arjun (Ind) 21-14, 21-14; Ben Lane-Sean Vendy (Eng) bt Chen Zhiyi-Presley Smith (USA) 21-18, 21-15; Lee Jhe-Huei-Yang Po-Hsuan (Tpe) bt He Keyuan-Liang Weikeng (Chn) 21-14, 21-16; Aaron Tai-Yap Roy King (Mas) bt Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin (Mas) 21-14, 21-15; Daniel Lindgaard-Mads Vestergaard (Den) bt Man Wei Chong-Tee Wai Kun (Mas) 21-15, 21-18; Hiromi Okuhara-Kyohei Yamashita (Jpn) bt Chiu Hsiang Chieh-Wang Chi-lin (Tpe) 19-21, 21-19, 21-9
Women’s singles: Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) bt Supanida Katethong (Tha) 18-21, 21-11, 21-13; Riko Gunji (Jpn) bt Tung Ciou-Tong (Tpe) 18-21, 21-16, 21-16; Chen Yufei (Chn) bt Kaloyana Nalbantova (Bul) 21-17, 19-21, 22-20; Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) bt Natsuki Nidaira (Jpn) 21-10, 21-14; Tomoka Miyazaki (Jpn) bt Line Hojmark Kjaersfeldt (Den) 21-16, 12-21, 21-10; Lin Hsiang Ti (Tpe) bt Ratchanok Intanon (Tha) 21-15, 21-19; Nozomi Okuhara (Jpn) bt Sung Shuo Yun (Tpe) 21-9, 21-10; Wang Zhiyi (Chn) bt Mia Blichfeldt (Den) 24-22, 21-16
Women’s doubles: Kim Hye-jeong-Lee Yeon-woo (Kor) bt Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto (Jpn) 21-19, 21-18; Kim Yu-jung-Lee Yu-lim (Kor) bt Lin Chih-Chun-Yang Chu Yan (Tpe) 21-14, 21-15; Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi (Jpn) bt Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand Pullela (Ind) 21-14, 21-14; Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma-Meilysa Trias Puspitasari (Ina) bt Mio Konegawa-An Uesugi (Jpn) 21-17, 21-11; Luo Yi-Wang Tingge (Chn) bt Sumire Nakade-Miyu Takahashi (Jpn) 21-16, 21-12; Hsu Yin-hui-Lin Jhih Yun (Tpe) bt Miki Kanehiro-Yuna Kato (Jpn) 21-17, 21-8; Amalia Cahaya Pratiwi-Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti (Ina) bt Sayaka Hirota-Ayako Sakuramoto (Jpn) 20-22, 21-19, 21-15; Ririna Hiramoto-Chiharu Shida (Jpn) bt Lauren Lam-Allison Quynh Lee (USA) 21-10, 21-12
Mixed doubles: Jiang Zhenbang-Wei Yaxin (Chn) bt Hoo Pang Ron-Lai Pei Jing (Mas) 21-12, 21-19; Cheng Xing-Zhang Chi (Chn) bt Kim Jae-hyeon-Jang Ha-jeong (Kor) 21-15, 21-14; Ye Hong Wei-Nicole Gonzales Chan (Tpe) bt Liu Kuang Heng-Hsu Yin-Hui (Tpe) 21-17, 12-21, 21-18; Yuta Watanabe-Maya Taguchi (Jpn) Amri Syahnawi-Nita Violina Marwah (Ind) 21-17, 11-21, 21-8; Zhu Yijun-Li Qian (Chn) bt Yuichi Shimogami-Sayaka Hobara (Jpn) walkover; Gao Jiaxuan-Wu Mengying (Chn) bt Guo Xinwa-Chen Fanghui (Chn) 14-21, 21-16, 21-19; Wu Hsuan-Yi-Yang Chu Yun (Tpe) bt Haruki Kawabe-Kokona Ishikawa (Jpn) 168-21, 22-20, 21-18; Akira Koga-Natsu Saito (Jpn) bt Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Supissara Paewsampran (Tha) 21-15, 21-7
