Zii Jia, ranked eighth in the world, outplayed his French opponent Brice Leverdez to claim the top spot in Group M and secure a place in the next stage of the competition. Leverdez started strong in the first set but Zii Jia caught up and stormed away to a 21-17 win. The Malaysian was fired up in the second and breezed past his opponent 21-5.
Chen Long, currently sixth in the current rankings, defeated Spain’s Pablo Abian 21-11, 21-10 to emerge the Group N winner. While Chen Long was celebrating his victory, world No. 1 and favourite Kento Momota suffered a shocking 15-21, 19-21 loss on home ground. The giant-slayer was South Korean Heo Kwanghee, presently 38th in the world rankings.
Earlier in the day, Soniia Cheah turned in a brave performance in her women’s singles Group N match against the fifth seeded Ratchanok Inthanon of Thailand but was unable to advance to the knockout stage.
Soniia surprised Ratchanok with a stunning first set, winning 21-19. The Thai star and former world champion however bounced back and shot to an 8-1 lead before going on to level the score at 21-18. Soniia tried hard in the decider but an injury to her ankle midway disrupted her rhythm and saw her lose the set 21-10.
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