An upset win over second seed Kodai Naraoka of Japan has earned unseeded Leong Jun Hao a place in the semi-finals of the men’s singles competition at the Bangladesh International Challenge in Dhaka.
Jun Hao pulled off a 21-17, 21-10 win over Naraoka, who is currently ranked 47th in the world. Naroka, who had won the International Challenges in Dubai, Jamaica, Laos and Mongolia earlier this year, was expected to breeze past the Malaysian. But Jun Hao, the 2017 Asian Junior champion and World Championships silver medallist had the better control of the match to earn a semi-final match against Canadian fourth seed Sheng Xiaodeng.
It would only be his third senior international appearance, having also reached the Malaysia International two years ago, where he lost to compatriot Iskandar Zulkarnain. Last year he beat Cheam June Wei to lift the Finnish Open crown.
However, it was end of the road for Ng Tze Yong, who was beaten 9-21, 11-21 by Indian top seed Lakshya Sen in his quarter-final tie.
Malaysia will also have two representative in the men’s doubles semi-finals with Yee Jun Chang-Kai Wun Tee gifted a walkover by India’s Kona Tarun-Shivam Sharma in their quarter-finals while Chen Tang Jie-Choong Hon Jian defeated Minhaz Mohammad-Moajjam Hossain Ohidul of Bangladesh 21-9, 21-16.
Tang Jie-Hon Jian would be up against India’s M.R. Arjun-Dhruv Kapila in the semi-finals while Yun Chang-Wun Tee will play Thailand’s Prad Tangsrirapeephan-Apichasit Teerawiwat in their last four match-up.
It will be the first semi-final appearance for both pairs. For Yun Chang-Wun Tee, their quarter-final appearance at the Malaysian International Challenge was their performance of the year before this.
Tang Jie-Hon Jian are chasing their first title since winning the Malaysia International Challenge last year.
Pearly Tan Koong Le-Thinaah Muralitharan are also in the semi-finals without even lifting their rackets in the women’s doubles. The top seeds received a bye in the first round and were gifted a walkover by the Bangladesh pair of Urmi Akter-Dulali Haidar in the quarter-final.
Pearly-Thinaah will play Thailand’s Chananchida Jucharoen-Walaiphan Patimon in the semi-finals. The Malaysian pair are chasing their third title of the year having also won both the India International Challenge and Malaysia International Series this year.
Malaysia will also have two representatives in the mixed doubles semi-finals. With India’s Shivam Sharma picking up an injury Malaysian pair of Choong Hon Jian-Payee Lim Peiy Yee were given a walkover by Shivam-Rutaparna Panda after the latter lost the first game 21-16.
Choong Hon-Payee will be up against Thailand’s Prad Tangsrirapeephan-Supamart Mingchua in the semi-finals.
As for Hoo Pang Ron-Cheah Yee See, they booked their semi-final place, breezing past Vichayapong Kanjanakeereewoong-Ruethaichanok Laisuan of Thailand 21-14, 21-5. They play India’s M.R. Arjun-K. Maneesha in the semi-finals.
MALAYSIAN RESULTS (Dec 10-13)
Men’s singles
First round: Md Tah M Ziyad bt Saran Jamsri ITha) 21-11, 21-13; Md Tah M Ziyad bt Yash Yogi (Ind) 21-13, 21-7; Dickson Khoo bt Georges Julien Paul (Mri) walkover; Ng Tze Yong bt Bobby Setiabudi (Ina) 22-20, 21-17; Lim Chong King bt Tang Kai Feng (Chn) 21-19, 21-17; Yeoh Seng Zoe bt Atyom Savatyugin (Uzb) 21-13, 21-11; Goh Giap Chin bt Minhaz Mohammad (Ban) 21-7, 21-7; Muhammad Izzuddin Shamsul Muzli bt Syabda Perkasa Belawa (Ina) 12-21, 21-11, 21-19; Leong Jun Hao bt Kiran Kumar Mekala (Ind) 19-21, 21-12, 21-8; Misbun Ramdan Mohamed Misbun lost to Mithun Manjunath (Ind) 10-21, 13-21; Lim Chi Wing bt Mohammad Salman Khan (Ban) 21-18, 21-19
Second round: Md Tah M Ziyad lost to Lakshya Sen Ind) 13-21, 6-21; Aidil Soleh Ali Sadikin bt Gourab Singha (Ban) 21-7, 21-6; Dickson Khoo lost to S Sankar Muthusamy Subramaniam (Ind) 21-3, 21-2; Ng Tze Yong bt Kiran George (Ind) 12-21, 21-18, 21-18; Lim Chong King bt Kartikey Gulshan Kumar 25-23, 15-21, 21-13; Yeoh Seng Zoe bt Nikhil Shyam Sriram (Ind) 21-16, 21-12; Goh Giap Chin lost to Christian Adinata (Ina) 14-21, 18-21; Muhammad Izzuddin Shamsul Muzli lost to Siddarth Pratap Singh (Ind) 16-21, 18-21; Leong Jun Hao bt Kantawat Leelavechabutr (Tha) 21-16, 21-15; Lim Chi Wing lost to Chirag Sen (Ind) 12-21, 18-21
Third round: Aidil Soleh Al Sadikin lost to Lakshya Sen (Ind) 17-21, 9-21; Ng Tze Yong bt S Sankar Muthusamy Subramaniam (Ind) retired; Lim Chong King lost to Ikhsan Leonardo Imanuel Rumbay (Ina) 17-21, 15-21; Yeoh Seng Zoe lost to Rahul Yadav Chittaboina (Ind) 15-21, 13-21; Leong Jun Hao bt Yonathan Ramlie (Ina) 18-21, 21-19, 26-24
Quarter-finals: Ng Tze Yong lost to Lakshya Sen (Ind) 9-21, 11-21; Leong Jun Hao bt Kodai Naraoka (Jpn) 21-17, 21-10
Men’s doubles
First round: Chen Tang Jie-Choong Hon Jian bt Md Zakaria Islam-Babu Md Rasel (Ban) 21-7, 21-7; Chew Yi Xin-Lim Chi Wing bt Muhammad Asauzzaman-Jumar Al-Amin (Ban) 21-14, 21-13
Second round: Chen Tang Jie-Choong Hon Jian bt Wachirawit-Sothon-Natthapat Trinkajee (Tha) 21-13, 21-15; Yee Jun Chang-Kai Wun Tee bt Yoshifumi Fujisawa-Kakeru Kumagai (Jpn) 21-15, 21-12; Chew Yi Xin-Lim Chi Wing lost to Prad Tangsrirapeephan-Apichasit Teerawiwat (Tha) 21-15, 21-9
Quarter-finals: Yee Jun Chang-Kai Wun Tee bt Kona Tarun-Shivam Sharma (Ind) retired; Chen Tang Jie-Choong Hon Jian bt Minhaz Mohammad-Moajjam Hossain Ohidul (Ban) 21-9, 21-16
Women’s doubles
First round: Cheah Yee See-Payee Lim Peiy Yee lost to K Maneesha-Rutaparna Panda (Ind) 13-21, 10-21; Teoh Mei Xing-Yap Ling lost to Ruethaichanok Laisuan-Supamart Mingchua (Tha) 18-21, 18-21
Quarter-finals: Pearly Tan Koong Le-Thinaah Muralitharan bt Urmi Akter-Dulali Haidar (Ban) retired;
Mixed doubles
Second round: Hoo Pang Ron-Cheah Yee See bt Mohammad Salman Khan-Alina Sultana 21-11, 21-9; Chen Tang Jie-Peck Yen Wei lost to Shuva Khandakar-Bristy Khatun (Ban) walkover; Choong Hon Jian-Payee Lim Peiy Yee bt Sam Magee-Chloe Magee (Ind) walkover
Quarter-finals: Choong Hon Jian-Payee Lim Peiy Yee bt Shivam Sharma-Rutaparna Panda (Ind) 21-16 rtd; Hoo Pang Ron-Cheah Yee See bt Vichayapong Kanjanakeereewoong-Ruethaichanok Laisuan (Tha) 21-14, 21-5
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