KUALA LUMPUR, July 14 — National men’s singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao got his Japan Open 2026 campaign off to a positive start after upsetting Taiwan’s Chi Yu Jen in Tokyo today.
In the opening round at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, the world No. 30 came out tops against the world No. 19 Yu Jen 21-19, 21-16 in 50 minutes.
The unseeded Jun Hao will face fifth seed Christo Popov in the second round after the Frenchman defeated China’s Weng Hong Yang 21-14, 23-21.
National women’s singles player Wong Ling Ching, however, suffered an early exit after going down 14-21, 11-21 to former world champion Pusarla V. Sindhu of India.
Meanwhile, it was a debut to forget for 2025 mixed doubles world champion Chen Tang Jie, who partnered young shuttler Clarissa San for the first time.
Tang Jie-Clarissa bowed out in the opening round after losing 15-21, 19-21 to Taiwan’s Yang Po-Hsuan-Hu Ling Fang.
Tang Jie is partnering Clarissa on a temporary basis after his regular partner, Toh Ee Wei, suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury during the Singapore Open 2026 last May.
Professional mixed doubles pair Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien also exited in the first round after going down 13-21, 18-21 to fifth seeds Guo Xin Wa-Chen Fang Hui of China.
In the men’s doubles, national pair Wan Arif Wan Junaidi-Yap Roy King saw their winning streak against American duo Chen Zhi Yi-Presley Smith come to an end after a 24-26, 21-15, 18-21 defeat in a 62-minute battle.
The result saw Zhi Yi-Smith narrow the head-to-head record to 3-1 in favour of the Malaysian pair. — Bernama
