Men’s doubles shuttlers Wan Arif Wan Junaidi-Yap Roy King continued to impress by knocking out top Danish pair Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in the first round of the Hong Kong Open.
The 20th ranked Malaysians, who were crowned Macau Open champions last month, were in their element winning 21-19, 23-21 against the world No 4 pair in 42 minutes.
Both pairs have each won once in their two encounters so far.
Wan Arif-Roy King’s giant-killing feat is a welcome result after the shock exit of top seeds Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik.
In the second round, Wan Arif-Roy King will meet the winners of the match between Malaysia’s Choong Hon Jian-Haikal Nazri and South Korean pair Kim Gi Jung-Kim Sa Rang.
In another men’s doubles tie, Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun defeated compatriots Nur Azriyn Ayub-Tan Wee Kiong 21-19, 21-12 to set up a second-round clash with Taiwan’s Lee Jhe Huei-Yang Po Hsuan.
World No 2 women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah cruised past Hong Kong’s Chun Wing Chi-Yu Yi Kiu 21-9, 21-9. The second seeds will next face either China‘s Chen Qingchen-Keng Shuliang or Indonesia’s Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma-Meilysa Trias Puspita Sari.
Another Malaysian women’s doubles pair, Go Pei Kee-Teoh Mei Xing, battled nearly an hour before overcoming Hong Kong’s Fan Ka Yan-Yau Mau Ying 21-15, 17-21, 21-12.
In the men’s singles, Justin Hoh advanced from the qualifiers with a 23-21, 21-13, 21-18 victory over India’s Tharun Mannepalli. He will face France’s Toma Junior Popov in the first round, with a possible second-round meeting against either Lee Zii Jia or Leong Jun Hao.
World No 43 Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin also progressed to the main draw after defeating England’s Ngam Heng Ling 21-7, 21-13. He will take on Taiwan’s world No 26 Chi Yu Jen in the opening round tomorrow.
