Good start for young Asian players
SYDNEY: It was a bright start for several Asian youngsters on the first day of the Xiamenair Australian Open Superseries here on Wednesday.
Malaysia's world junior champion Goh Jin Wei, hailed as a future star by many, once again showed her potential and made her superseries debut with a 21-18, 21-0 win over Canada's Michelle Li, the Commonwealth Games champion.
The 16-year-old, who played for Malaysia in the Uber Cup Finals in Kunshan last month and ranked No 58 in the world, dumped her experienced Hong Kong-born Canadian rival, who is ranked No 21, in only 33 minutes to advance to the second round.
Jin Wei will take on India's No 8 and Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal for a place in the quarter-finals. Nehwal came off 21-10, 21-14 winner against Australian Joy Lai.
It was also a bad day for Japan's fifth seed and All-England champion Nozomi Okuhara who was bundled out by China's Sun Yu. The Chinese won 21-33, 21-17, 21-19 in a match which lasted 83 minutes.
Thai ace Ratchanok Intanon, who surrendered her Indonesia Open title last week with a surprise defeat to Sun Yu of China in the first round, got off to a winning start in Sydney with a 21-13, 21-16 win over Japan's Minatsu Mitani.
In the second round Ratchanok will face Hong Kong's Yip Pui Yin. Pui Ying defeated Australian Sylvina Kurniawan 21-8, 21-13.
The Asian might was also felt by Scotland's Kirsty Gilmour in her 16-21, 10-21 defeat to fourth seed Wang Yihan of China. Wang Yihan finished runners-up in the Indonesian Open last week where she lost to Taiwan's Tai Tze Ying 17-21, 8-21 in the final.
Tzu Ying, seeded eight, was taken to three sets by Japan's Sayaka Sato before prevailing 21-12, 19-21, 21-19 and will face Malaysia's top woman shuttler Tee Jing Yi. Jing Yi, the world No 29 in the second round. Jing Yi defeated Wendy Chen of Australia 21-18, 21-11.
In the men's singles top seed Chen Long of China breezed into the second round after an easy 21-3, 21-4 win over Australian Tang Huaidong in 20 minutes.
Indonesia's Sony Dwi Kuncoro, winner of the Singapore Openm upset China's sixth Tian Houwei of China 21-16, 21-12 while Vietnam veteran Nguyen Tien Minh outplayed Japan's Takuma Ueda 21-13, 21-17.
Malaysian youngsters Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin and Zulfadli Zulkifli also had winning starts to their campaign in Sydney.
Iskandar, the national champion, gunned down Frenchman Brice Leverdez 21-12, 21-14 in 30 minutes while Zulfadli was too strong for Australian Anthony Joe in his 21-13, 21-6 win.
It will be a tough second round for Zulfadli when he faces favourite Chen Long. Iskandar will meet Japan's Sho Sasaki for a place in the quarter-finals. Sasaki beat Taiwanese Hsu Jen-hao 21-14, 21-12 in the first round.
Indonesian Anthony Ginting upset Taiwan's seventh seed Chou Tien-chen 21-8, 21-12. However, India's Sameer Verma showed the exit to another Indonesian youngster Ihsan Maulana Mustofa with a hard fought 22-20, 15-21, 21-15 victory. Ihsan reached the semi-finals in the Indonesian Open before losing to eventual champion Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia.
