Thailand's rising star Pornpawee Chochuwong gave herself a big boost ahead of next month's Asian Junior Championships in Bangkok when she marched into the second round in the USD200,000 Yonex Taiwan Open Grand Prix Gold in Taipei on Wednesday.
Pornpawee carved out a solid 21-19, 16-21, 21-18 win over Taiwan's Shih Jyun Jyou in 47 minutes to earn a second round clash against another Taiwanese Pai Yu Po, the seventh seed. Yu Po won her first round match against Pornpawee's compatriot Supanida Katethong 21-16, 21-7 in 32 minutes.
The 18-year-old Pornpawee is Thailand's hope in the mixed team event and the girls' singles in the Asian junior championships which will be held from July 9-17. She won the silver medal in the girls' singles last year.
The team event will be played from July 9-12 followed by the individual events from July 13-17.
In other first round matches in the Taiwan Open, top seed Wang Shixian of China breezed past Taiwan's Hung Shih Han 21-14, 21-16 in 33 minutes while compatriot and third seed Sun Yu ran out 21-9, 21-6 winner over Australia's Wendy Chen.
Fourth seed, He Bingjiao of China was given a tough fight by Taiwan's Chen Hsiao-huan before prevailing 21-19, 23-25, 21-10 while Indonesia's Hana Ramadhini came from a set down to defeat India's P.C. Thulasi 17-21, 21-15, 21-18.
Malaysia's Ho Yen Mei kept the country's flag flying with a straight set 21-13, 21-8 win over Taiwan's Shuo Yung Sung in 28 minutes and will face Korea's Lee Jang-mi who upset Thailand's fifth seed Porntip Buranaprasertsuk with a rather easy 21-15, 21-12 win.
Home favourite Tai Tzu Ying romped to a 21-11, 21-11 win over Cheung Ngan Yi of Hong Kong while China's Chen Yufei outplayed Indonesia's Fitriani Fitriani 21-14, 21-16.
China's Chen Long, the top seed in the men's singles pulled out at the 11th hour and this saw Malaysia's national champion Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin reach the third round despite having to play two matches in a space of four hours.
In the first round, Iskandar stopped Indonesian youngster Firman Abdul Kholik 21-19, 21-14 before the world No 32 and 13th seeded Malaysian hammered a 21-10, 21-14 win over Singapore's No 1 Derek Wong. Iskandar was scheduled to play Chen Long in the second round.
Malaysian professional Daren Liew awaits Iskandar for a place in the quarter-finals. Daren who quit the Malaysian national team earlier this year won his first two matches – defeating Taiwan's Kuo Ching-hung 21-12, 21-19 in the first round before stopping another Taiwanese Shih Kuei-chun 21-18, 21-14 in the second round.
Rio Olympics bound Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying, seeded No 1 in the mixed doubles, got their campaign off to a winning start with a 21-13, 21-14 win over Hong Kong's Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet.
Also through to the second round is another Malaysian pair Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing who upstaged sixth seeds Huang Kaixiang-Huang Dongping of China 21-12, 21-19 in only 17 minutes.
Hafiz Faisal-Shelle Devi Aulia of Indonesia were also in winning form with a 21-11, 21-18 win over Thailand's Parinyawat Thongnuam-Natcha Saengchote while second seeds Reginald Lee Chun Hei-Chau Hoi Wah of Hong Kong
SELECTED RESULTS
Men's singles (First Round)
Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin (Mas) bt Firman Abdul Kholik (Ina) 21-19, 21-11
Daren Liew (Mas) bt Kuo Ching-hung (Tpe) 21-12, 21-19
Vincent Wong Wing Ki (Hkg) bt Chiang Shiang Chian (Mas) 21-8, 21-4
Huang Yuxian (Chn) bt Chong Wei Feng (Mas) 21-17, 21-13
Tan Chun Seang (Mas) bt Mek Narongkrit (Tha) 21-19, 21-17
Hsieh Lin Yu (Tpe) bt Sony Dwi Kuncoro (Ina) 17-21, 21-8, 21-18
Yang Chih Chieh (Tpe) beat Tan Teck Han (Mas) 21-10, 21-11
Goh Giap Chin (Mas) beat Cheng Po Wei (Tpe) 20-22, 21-19m 21-19
Arif Abdul Latif (Mas) beat Yu Jen Chi (Tpe) 21-18, 21-17
Goh Soon Huat (Mas) beat Teng Shih Hua (Tpe) 21-14, 21-15
Subhankar Dey (Ind) beat Hu Yun (Hkg) 21-13, 21-8
Vladimir Malkov (Rus) beat Lo Chi Yu (Tpe) 21-17, 21-17
Wei Nan (Hkg) bt Shreyansh Jaiswal (Ind) 19-21, 22-20, 21-15
Tan Teck Han (Mas) bqt Lin Chia Hsuan (Tpe) 3-1 (rtd)
Khosit Phetpradap (Tha) bt Yang Yi-hsiang (Tpe) 21-9, 21-17
Boonsak Polsana (Tha) bt Seung Jae-seo (Kor) 21-18, 21-18
Shih Kuei Chun (Tpe) bt Jacob Maliekal (SA) 13-21, 21-18, 21-17
Second Round
Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin (Mas) bt Derek Wong (Sin) 21-0, 21-14
Daren Liew (Mas) bt Shih Kuei Chun (Tpe) 21-18, 21-14
Tian Houwei (Chn) bt Tan Chun Seang (Mas) 21-12, 21-10
Angus Ng Ka Long (Hkg) beat Arif Abdul Latif (Mas) 21-17, 21-8
Yang Chih Chieh (Tpe) bt Tan Teck Han (Mas) 21-10, 21-11
Boonsak Polsana (Tha) bt Huang Yuxiang (Chn) 21-14, 21-18
Khosit Phetpradap (Tha) bt Wang Tzu Wei (Tpe) 21-16, 19-21, 21-17
Hsueh Hsuan Yi (Tpe) beat Goh Soon Huat (Mas) 21-15, 21-16
Men's Doubles (First Round)
Hoon Thien How-Teo Kok Siang (Mas) bt Shang Kai Lin-Lu Ching Yao (Tpe) 21-15, 22-20
Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Rian Ardianto (Ina) bt Bae Kwon-young-Kim Deok-young (Kor) 21-17, 23-21
Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi (Mas) bt Hantoro-Yohanes Rendy Sugiarto (Ina) 21-10, 21-8
Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiog (Mas) bt Lin Chia Yu-Wu Hsiao-lin (Tpe) 21-13, 16-21, 21-17
Lim Khim Wah-Ong Jian Guo (Mas) bt Songphon Anugritayawon-Chaloempon Charoenkitamom (Tha) 21-10, 21-15
Hardianto Hardianto-Kenas Adi Haryanto (Ina) bt Lee Jhe-huei-Yang Lee (Tpe) 21-14, 21-19
Women's singles (First Round)
Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) bt Shih Jyun Shou (Tpe) 21-19, 16-21, 21-18
Pai Yu Po (Tpe) beat Supanida Katethong (Tha) 21-16, 21-7
Chen Yufei (Chn) bt Fitriani Fitriani (Ina) 21-14, 21-16
Ho Yen Mei (Mas) bt Shuo Yun Sung (Tpe) 21-13, 21-8
Women's doubles (First Round)
Chow Mei Kuan-Lee Meng Yean (Mas) bt Hsu Ya Ching-Pai Yu Po (Tpe) 21-9, 13-21, 21-12
Tiara Rosalia Nuraidah-Rizki Amelia Pradipta (Ina) bt Cheung Ying Mei-Fan Ka Yan (Hkg) 21-13, 21-10
Mixed Doubles (First Round)
Alfian Eko Prasetya-Annisa Saufika (Ina) bt Liu Yuchen-Jia Yifan (Chn) 21-18, 19-21, 21-16
Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing (Mas) bt Huang Kaixiang-Huang Dongpin (Chn) 21-12, 21-19
Hafiz Faisal-Shella Devi Aulia (Ina) bt Parinyawat Thongnuam-Natcha Saengchote (Tha) 21-11, 21-18
Zheng Siwei-Chen Qingchen (Chn) bt Yeung Shing Choi-Yeung Nga Ting (Hkg) 21-11, 21-9
Reginald Lee Chun Hei-Chau Hoi Wah (Hkg) bt Lu Ching Yao-Huang Mei Ching (Tpe) 21-17, 21-19
Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying (Mas) bt Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (Hkg) 21-13, 21-14
