The prestigious YONEX All England 2026 (Super 1000) kicked off its Round of 32, but for the Malaysian contingent, it was a day of brutal reality checks.
On a “Black Tuesday” where the nation’s premier doubles pairs fell like dominoes, it took a phenomenal, gritty performance from singles ace Leong Jun Hao to keep the Jalur Gemilang flying high.
All eyes were on the Men’s Singles (MS) court as Leong Jun Hao faced off against Japan’s relentless Kenta Nishimoto. In a match that demanded pure stamina and mental fortitude, Jun Hao drew first blood, taking the opening set 21-17.
The Japanese veteran answered back fiercely to dominate the second set 21-13, pushing the match to a nerve-wracking decider. Refusing to back down, Jun Hao showcased brilliant tactical composure to outlast Nishimoto 21-18 in the third, securing a monumental victory and single-handedly salvaging Malaysia’s opening day.
The biggest shockwave of the night came in the Mixed Doubles (XD) division. The highly-fancied national duo and 4th seeds, Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei, suffered a devastating upset at the hands of Denmark’s Rasmus Espersen and Amalie Cecilie Kudsk. Despite bouncing back from a second-set slump to force a marathon decider, the Malaysians were edged out in a sudden-death thriller, falling 23-25.
The XD woes continued as both Jimmy Wong and Lai Pei Jing and Hoo Pang Ron and Cheng Su Yin fought valiantly but ultimately bowed out in straight sets to opponents from Chinese Taipei and India, respectively.
It wasn’t any easier for the Men’s Doubles (MD) department. The independent veteran pair of Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi ran into the formidable Indonesian 5th seeds, Fajar Alfian and M. Shohibul Fikri, and were outclassed 9-21, 17-21.
Meanwhile, the dynamic duo of Choong Hon Jian and Haikal Nazri struggled to break through the towering defense of Denmark’s Kim Astrup and Anders S. Rasmussen, conceding the match 13-21, 17-21.
Credit Photo : BERNAMA
