Malaysia’s Hoo Pang Ron and Lai Pei Jing saw their Korea Open campaign end Friday when China’s top seeds Jiang Zhenbang and Wei Yaxin beat the world No. 15 pair 21-14, 21-18 in 32 minutes at Jinnam Stadium in Yeosu, South Korea, NST reported.
The loss in the mixed doubles quarterfinals of the BWF World Tour Super 500 event capped a 25-day stretch in which the independent Malaysian pair played 16 matches and won 12, reaching at least the semifinals at four consecutive tournaments.
The quarterfinal defeat in Yeosu
The Chinese pair, ranked world No. 2, took both games in straight sets, 21-14 and 21-18, at Jinnam Stadium. NST reported the match lasted 32 minutes. Badminton Planet, which covered the pair’s run-up to the quarterfinals, had reported a day earlier that Hoo and Lai needed only two games to beat South Korea’s Jin Sung Ik and Lee Seung Hee 21-8, 21-15 in the round of 16, setting up the meeting with Jiang and Wei.
The quarterfinal loss was the Malaysians’ second straight defeat to the same Chinese combination. NST reported they had also fallen to Jiang Zhenbang and Wei Yaxin 21-11, 24-22 in the Macau Open semifinals in June.
Sixteen matches, 12 wins in 25 days
Despite the setback in Yeosu, the numbers behind the Malaysians’ run are striking. Since the Denmark Open opened on Oct. 13, Hoo and Lai played 16 matches over 25 days and won 12, according to NST. Over that span they reached the Denmark Open semifinals, finished as runners-up at the French Open, made the Hylo Open semifinals and then the Korea Open last eight — their fifth consecutive tournament, NST reported.
The same stretch offered a chance at a fourth straight semifinal appearance, though Jiang and Wei, at world No. 2, presented a difficult challenge in the quarterfinals.
What the reports leave open
Neither report states the pair’s next scheduled tournament or how the quarterfinal exit affects their world No. 15 ranking, so the competitive consequence beyond Yeosu is not yet known. What the match record does show is a pattern against this particular opponent: two meetings with Jiang and Wei this season, two losses, the latest one ending a run that had carried the Malaysians deep into four straight events.
Worth a look
