SINGAPORE – Loh Kean Yew’s strong run at the Korea Open ended with a loss to Denmark’s world number 16 Anders Antonsen in the men’s singles final on Sunday (July 23).
At Jinnam Stadium in Yeosu, eighth-ranked Loh fell 21-11, 11-21, 19-21 in a seesaw clash. Loh was seeking his first Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour title since he won the World Championship in 2021.
Antonsen looked the more confident of the two from the start as he raced to a 5-1 lead.
But the Singaporean has shown time and time again in this tournament that he is unfazed by being left behind, and a series of trademark jump shots helped him trap the Dane and take an 11-10 lead going into the break.
Loh stretched the gap to 16-10 and Antonsen simply had no answer as the Singaporean closed out the first game on 16 minutes.
The second game followed the same pattern as the first in the early exchanges, but it was Antonsen who took an 11-6 lead. Loh failed to put together a scoring streak and his opponent would comfortably take second.
Unlike the first two games, the decider saw Loh take an early lead as he moved to 7-3. But Antonsen won four straight points at claw level, before taking an 11-8 lead at halftime.
Undeterred, the Singaporean would find his way back into the 8-13 to 12-13 game. But a crucial error in the net by Loh allowed Antonsen to extend his lead and ultimately took the thrilling equalizer.
This was Loh’s second final in 2023. He reached the final of the Badminton Asian Championships in April, where he lost to Indonesia’s Anthony Ginting, taking silver.
Both Antonsen and Loh played a significant number of minutes in the tournament leading up to their meeting, with the Dane totaling 226 minutes to Loh’s 215.
The Singaporean, in particular, had to overcome a grueling semi-final against world number 4 and top seed Kodai Naraoka just a day earlier.
One game down and 4-12, Loh displayed remarkable composure and focus as he beat Naraoka 18-21, 21-16, 21-15. This was Loh’s third win of her career against Naraoka, who has never beaten the Singaporean.
Loh beat China’s Zhao Jun Peng in the round of 16 and then beat Malaysia’s Ng Tze Yong in a rematch of the men’s singles quarterfinal at last year’s Commonwealth Games.
Loh’s previous best result on tour this year was when she reached the quarterfinals of the Indian Open and the Malaysian Open, both in January. He was knocked out both times by Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn.
This is Antonsen’s second career win against Loh. The Singaporean beat him en route to being crowned world champion. However, Antonsen would avenge that defeat months later at the All England Open.
The former world number 2 has also been in fine form this season and recorded three top-three finishes before the Korea Open.
2023-07-23 08:07:38
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