PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei reached the quarter-finals of the Japan Open badminton championships in Tokyo yesterday but our men’s doubles suffered their worst ever results this year when none cleared the early rounds.

The 25-year-old Chong Wei, determined to make up for his poor showing in the World Championships at home last month, battled for 51 minutes to beat Singaporean Ronald Susilo 19-21, 21-8, 21-10.

Chong Wei, the only Malaysian left in the fray after the second day of action, will take on China’s Chen Jin in today’s quarter-finals.

Nusa Mahsuri’s Mohd Roslin Hashim and Yeoh Kay Bin crashed out in contrasting fashions yesterday.

Roslin gave a fighting performance before bowing out 11-21, 21-18, 11-21 to top seed and reigning world champion Lin Dan of China while Kay Bin went down at 11-21, 16-21 to Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia.

It was, however, a good day for South Korean Park Sung-hwan, Hong Kong’s Chan Yan Kit and Indonesian Simon Santoso. They pulled off upset wins over Denmark’s Kenneth Jonasssen, China’s Chen Yu and Thailand’s Boonsak Ponsana respectively.

The biggest letdown were the Malaysian men’s doubles players.

Good show: South Korea’s Park Sung-hwan and Hong Kong’s Chan Yan Kit (inset) scored upset wins over higher-ranked shuttlers – Kenneth Jonassen and Chen Yu respectively – in the Japan Open yesterday.

With the shock defeats of Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong and Choong Tan Fook-Lee Wan Wah yesterday, Malaysia failed to have at least one pair in the quarter-finals for the first time in an Open tournament this year.

The second-seeded Kien Keat-Boon Heong went down 19-21, 19-21 to Indonesians Alven Yulianto-Luluk Hadiyanto. It was their first defeat to the Indons.

Seasoned campaigners Tan Fook-Wan Wah, who were Malaysia’s top performers at last month’s world meet, fell 18-21, 16-21 to Indonesian-born Hendra Kurniawan Saputra-Hendra Wijaya of Singapore.

It was a double blow for Wan Wah as he aggravated an injury to his right knee.

National chief coach Yap Kim Hock played down the doubles wipe-out.

“It is a setback for us that none made it to the quarter-finals. We do not want to be too worried with the results of only one tournament,” said Kim Hock in a telephone interview from Tokyo. “Besides, there were other upsets too. Our goal is the Beijing Olympics and I am confident our players will get back on the right track.”

In the women’s singles, Wong Mew Choo failed to reproduce the form that saw her beat Xie Xingfang of China in the third round of the world meet. Yesterday, she lost 9-21, 15-21.

Men’s singles

Second round: Lin Dan (Chn) bt Mohd Roslin Hashim (Mas) 21-11, 18-21, 21-11; Peter Gade-Christensen (Den) bt Ng Wei (Hkg) 21-9, 21-18; Lee Chong Wei (Mas) bt Ronald Susilo (Sin) 19-21, 21-8, 21-10; Chen Jin (Chn) bt Lee Hyun-il (Kor) 21-16, 21-14; Park Sung-hwan (Kor) bt Kenneth Jonassen (Den) 21-17, 21-19; Taufik Hidayat (Ina) bt Yeoh Kay Bin (Mas) 21-11, 21-16; Chan Yan Kit (Hkg) bt Chen Yu (Chn) 21-18, 24-22; Simon Santoso (Ina) bt Boonsak Ponsana (Tha) 21-15, 21-10.

Men’s doubles

Second round: Lars Paaske-Jonas Rasmussen (Den) bt Cai Yun-Fu Haifeng (Chn) 22-20, 22-20; Lee Lae-jin-Hwang Ji-man (Kor) bt Albertus Susanto Njoto-Yohan Hadikusumo Wiratama (Hkg) 16-21, 21-19, 21-6; Candra Wijaya-Tony Gunawan (Ina-USA) bt Chien Yu-hsun-Lin Yu-lang (Tpe) 21-13, 21-13; Tadashi Ohtsuka-Keita Masuda (Jpn) bt Jung Jae-sung-Lee Yong-dae (Kor) 14-21, 27-25, 21-18; Shuichi Sakamoto-Shintaro Ikeda (Jpn) bt Jens Eriksen-Martin Lundgaard Hansen (Den) 17-21, 21-13, 24-22; Markis Kido-Hendra Setiawan (Ina) bt Sudket Prapakamol-Phattapol Ngernsrisuk (Tha) 18-21, 21-7, 21-12; Hendra Kurniawan Saputra-Hendra Wijaya (Sin) bt Choong Tan Fook-Lee Wan Wah (Mas) 21-18, 21-16; Luluk Hadiyanto-Alven Yulianto (Ina) bt Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong (Mas) 21-19, 21-19.

(Selected Malaysian results)

Women’s singles: Xie Xingfang (Chn) bt Wong Mew Choo 21-9, 21-15.

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