Malaysia’s top men’s singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao’s first-round jinx continued at the Kumamoto Masters in Japan when he was knocked out by a lower-ranked Indian opponent in the opening round.
In his 11th first-round loss of the season, the world No 22 was outplayed by world No 35 HS Prannoy of India in three games 21-16, 13-21, 21-23 in a match lasting 67 minutes at the Kumamoto Prefectural Gymnasium.
Jun Hao’s performance was a far cry from last year, when he produced several giant-killing feats to reach the final before bowing out to China‘s Li Shi Feng in straight games.
Jun Hao’s final outing in the World Tour series this season will be at the Australian Open next week, but he has no chance of qualifying for the prestigious World Tour Finals in China next month.
Malaysia will not have any representatives in the men’s or women’s singles categories, but will feature strongly in the men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles events.
