Tough game: Leong Jun Hao stretches to retrieve a shot by China’s Lu Guangzu in the first round of the Malaysian Open. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: Shuttler Leong Jun Hao needs to crack the code to beat China’s top ranked players if he wants to establish himself among the world’s elite in men’s singles.
This is the reality that Jun Hao has to face after he was sent packing in the first round of the prestigious Malaysian Open at Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
Jun Hao went down to Lu Guangzu of China 17-21, 21-16, 13-21 in a gruelling 80-minute battle, marking the end of Malaysia’s challenge in the men’s singles event in the World Tour Super 1000 tournament.
The 25-year-old Jun Hao was the sole Malaysian representative in the men’s singles following the absence of Lee Zii Jia, who withdrew due to an ankle injury sustained at the World Tour Finals in Hangzhou, China last month.
It is well known that Chinese players dominate this event, with five of them ranked in the world’s top 30. Besides the world No. 16 Guangzu, the others are world No. 1 Shi Yuqi, Li Shifeng (7), Weng Hongyang (20) and Lei Lanxi (22).
Jun Hao took the defeat as a valuable lesson.
In fact, he hopes to be wiser when he faces Shifeng in the India Open next week.
“I am, of course, disappointed with the result, but it was a tough game. In the end, I gave it everything I had, but closing the gap was very difficult because I fell behind early in the match,” said Jun Hao.
“Perhaps he used his experience against me. You could see at crucial points that he played better and stayed more positive.
“Maybe I lost today’s (yesterday) match, but I know what I have and what I need to improve on, and I’ll keep working on it.
“I’ll try to step up in training tomorrow. While I may have lost today (yesterday), the lessons I learned will be carried forward,” said Jun Hao.
Jun Hao has yet to face world No 1 Shi Yuqi out of the top five Chinese players in the top 30.
Interestingly, Jun Hao has secured victories against two of them, defeating Lanxi at the 2023 Korean Masters and Hongyang at the 2022 Malaysian Masters.
His upcoming meeting with Shifeng in New Delhi presents a daunting challenge, as the world number seven has won all four of their previous encounters since last year.
