It was a good day for defending champion Sung Ji-hyun and four compatriots with the surname Kim in the women's singles first round in the USD600,000 Victor Korea Open Superseries at the Seong-nam Indoor Stadium on Wednesday.
Ji-hyun defeated Hong Kong's Cheung Ngan Yi 21-14, 21-14 in 31 minutes to earn a second round clash against Denmark's Anna Thea Madsen. The Dane was a 21-18, 13-21, 21-18 winner over India's Tanvi Lad after slogging for an hour.
Of the four Kims – Hyo-min is the first to make the quarter-finals after receiving a walkover from top seed Carolina Marin of Spain. The newly crowned Olympic champion received a first round bye but later withdrew from the tournament.
The other Kims who advanced to the second round are Kim Ga-eun who beat Hong Kong's Yip Pui Yin (21-19, 21-15); Kim Na-young who won against Maya Chen of the United States (21-8, 2-10) while Kim Hyang-im came off 21-17, 21-16 winner against Hong Kong's Pui Yu Po.
The other Korean shuttlers still in contention are Lee Jang-im who upset Sun Yu, the No 8 seed and runners-up in last week's Yonex Japan Open 21-18, 21-14 in 46 minutes.
Thailand's No 3 seed Ratchanok Intanon also got off to a winning start – getting past Taiwan's Hsu Ya-ching 21-13, 21-12 for a second round meeting with China's Chen Yufei who defeated another Taiwanese Lee Chia-hsin 21-19, 21-16.
Last week's Japan Open winner He Bingjiao outplayed Bulgaria's Linda Zetchiri 21-12, 21-13 and will play Japan's Minatsu Mitani.
In the men's single No 3 seed Jan O Jorgensen and Korea's veteran Lee Hyun-ill will battle each other for a quarter-final berth after winning their first round matches. Jorgensen beat Indonesia's Sony Dwi Kuncoro (23-21, 21-13 while Hyun-ill had an easier match against Japan's Kazumasa Sakai (21-11, 21-12).
Another of Korea's favourite sons Son Wan-ho outplayed Shi Yuqi of China 21-18, 21-10 in 43 minutes and will met India's B. Sai Praneeth for a place in the quarter-finals. The Indian beat Taiwan's Hsu Jan Hao 21-13, 12-21, 21-15.
There was more cheer for Korea when qualifier Sae Seung-jae came back from a set down to defeat veteran Frenchman Brice Leverdez 15-21, 21-10, 21-12 in a 53 minute match.
Malaysia's No 2 player Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin, ranked No 28 in the world put up a gritty performance to down world No 9 Angus Ng Ka Long of Hong Kong 13-21, 21-14, 21-17. He will face China's Qiao Bin the second round. The Chinese youngster upstaged fifth seed Chou Tien Chen of Taiwan 21-14, 21-18.
In the men's doubles world champions Mohammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan of Indonesia who crashed out in the semi-finals in the Japan Open to China's eventual champions Li Junhui-Liu Yuchen cleared the first hurdle with a 21-16, 21-14 win over the scratch combination of Adam Hall-Peter Mills (Scot/Eng).
Malaysia's Olympic silver medal winners Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong will meet England's Peter Briggs-Tom Wolfenden for a place in the quarter-finals. The English got a walkover from Korea's Choi Soi-gyu-Kim Gi-jung while the Malaysians beat Taiwan's Chen Hung Ling-Wang Chi-Lin 22-20, 21-14.
Second seeds Chai Biao-Hong Wei of China were taken to three sets before prevailing 15-21, 21-17, 21-11 over Danish pair Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in 53 minutes.
SELECTED FIRST ROUND RESULTS
Men's singles
Hans-Kristian Vittinghus (Den) beat Goh Soon Huat (Mas) 21-15, 21-12
Wang Tzu Wei (Tpe) beat H.S. Prannoy (Ind) 21-23, 21-17, 21-15
Son Wan-ho (Kor) beat Shi Yuqi (Chn) 21-18, 21-10
B. Sai Praneeth (Ind) beat Hsu Jan-hao (Tpe) 21-13, 12-21, 21-15
Jan O Jorgensen (Den_ beat Sony Dwi Kuncoro (Ina) 23-21, 21-13
Lee Hun-ill (Kor) beat Kazumasa Sakai (Jpn) 21-11, 21-12
Huang Yuxiang (Chn) beat Lee Dong Keun (Kor) 21-11, 21-10
Vincent Wong Wing Ki (Hkg) beat K. Srikanth (Ind) 21-10, 22-24, 21-17
Emil Holst (Den) beat Hu Yun (Hkg) 21-7, 21-13
Ajay Jayaram (Ind) beat Jeon Hyeok-jin (Kor) 23-21, 21-18
Seo Seung-jae (Kor) beat Brice Leverdez (Fra) 15-21, 21-10, 21-12
Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin (Mas) beat Angus Ng Ka Long (Hkg) 13-21, 21-14, 21-17
Tian Houwei (Chn) beat P. Kashyap (Ind) 20-22, 21-10, 21-13
Qiao Bin (Chn) beat Chou Tien Chen (Tpe) 21-14, 21-18
Marc Zwiebler (Ger) beat Wei Nan (Hkg) 21-10, 21-16
Heo Kwang-hee (Kor) beat Anders Antonsen (Den) 22-20, 21-18
Men's doubles
Liu Xiaolong-Lu Kai (Chn) beat Ben Lane-Sean Vandy (Eng) 15-21, 21-10, 21-12
Takeshi Kamura-Keigo Sonoda (Jpn) beat Kim Jae-hwan-Ko Sung-hyun (Kor) 29-30, 21-19, 21-9
Lee Sheng-mu-Wu Hsiao-Lim (Tpe) w/o Mathias Boe-Carsten Mogensen (Den)
Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi (Jpn) beat Bae Kwan-young-Kim Dae-eun (Kor) 19-21, 21-12, 21-11
Huang Kaixiang-Wang Yilyu (Chn) beat Mads Conrads Petersen-Mads Pieler Kolding (Den) 21-18, 21-11
Hoon Thien How-Teo Kok Siang (Mas) beat Lee Sang-won-Park Kyung-hoon (Kor) 21-19, 19-21, 22-20
Liu Cheng-Zheng Siwei (Chn) beat Lin Chia-yu-Tsai Chia Hsin (Tpe) 24-22. 21-15
Mohammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan (Ina) beat Adam Hall-Peter Mills (Scot/Eng) 21-16, 21-14
Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong (Mas) beat Chen Hung Ling-Wang Chi-Lin (Tpe) 22-20, 21-14
Takuto Inoue-Yuki Kaneko (Jpn) beat Matthew Nottingham-Harley Towler (Eng) 21-10, 21-17
Chai Biao-Hong ei (Chn) beat Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen (den) 15-21, 21-17, 21-11
Peter Briggs-Tom Wolfenden (Eng) w/o Choi Soi-gyu-Kim Gi-jung (Kor)
Women's singles
Lee Jang-mi (Kor) beat Sun Yu (Chn) 21-18, 21-14
Kim Hyang-im (Kor) beat Pai Yu Po (Tpe) 21-17, 21-16
Kim Hyo-min (Kor) beat Line Kjaersfeldt (Den) 16-21, 21-15, 21-19
Kim Ga-eun (Kor) beat Yip Pui Yin (Hkg) 21-19, 21-15
Tai Tzu Ying (Tpe) beat Aya Ohori (Jpn) 21-16, 21-15
Kim Na-young (Kor) beat Maya Chen (USA) 21-8, 21-10
Sung Ji-hyun (Kor) beat Cheung Ngan Yi (Hkg) 21-14, 21-14
Anna Thea Madsen (Den) beat Tanvi Lad (Ind) 21-18, 13-21, 21-18
He Bingjiao (Chn) beat Linda Zetchiri (Bul) 21-12, 21-13
Chen Yufei (Chn) beat Lee Chia-hsin (Tpe) 21-19, 21-16
Ratchanok Intanon (Tha) beat Hsu Ya-ching (Tpe) 21-13, 21-12
Sayaka Sato (Jpn) beat Lyanny Alessandra Mainaky (Ina) 21-12, 21-6
Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) beat Lee Min-ji (Kor) 21-18, 16-21, 21-13
Women's doubles
Kim So-yeong-Kong Hee-yong (Kor) beat Jessica Pugh-Emily Westwood (Eng) 21-11, 21-17
Gabriela Stoeva-Stefani Stoeva (Bul) beat Maiken Fruergaard-Sara Thygesen (Den) 21-17, 21-14
Kim Hye-rin-Yoo Hae-won (Kor) beat Lin Xiao Min-Wu Fang Chien (Tpe) 21-14, 21-13
Au Dongni-Yu Xiaohan (Chn) beat Johanna Goliszewski-Lara Kaepplein (Ger) 21-7, 21-13
Go Ah-ra-Kim Hyang-im (Kor) beat Vivian Hoo-Woon Khe Wei (Mas) 21-9, 13-21, 21-18
