Tai Tzu Ying crashes out of China Open

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Gao Fang Jie thanks Tai Tzu Ying (R) after her China Open first round victory.(photo: AFP)
Gao Fang Jie thanks Tai Tzu Ying (R) after her China Open first round victory.(photo: AFP)

Changzhou: China’s unseeded Gao Fangjie has upset Tai Tzu Ying of Taiwan, eliminating the No. 1 seed 21-17,21-16 in the first round of China Open on Wednesday.

This was the third time World No. 1 Tai has been defeated by Chinese players this year. She was outlasted by China’s Chen Xiaoxin in the second round of Japan Open last week, and before that, she was gunned down by He Bingjiao in the World Championships.

“My coach has given me a lot of confidence. He told me if I play my best, I should be able to challenge the top players in the world,” said Gao.

The 20-year-old Gao who surprised everybody, including herself, told reporters that she thought she was playing pretty badly on Wednesday.

“I think I did not play well today, but my opponent was playing worse than me. I feel that she has not been in her best form recently, so I took the chance to beat her,” added Gao.

Gao will take on Thai player Nitchaon Jindapol next.

On the other hand, last week’s Japan Open winner, Carolina Marin from Spain, got off to a strong start to ease past Mia Blichfeldt of Denmark 21-13, 21-13 to set up second round fight with Japanese player Sayaka Takahashi.

Meanwhile, Tai Tzu Ying posted a message on her social media after her first round loss by saying: “Even if you are already in the first place, you still have to learn to bear the feeling of losing. Because losing is part of the journey to victory. No one can win forever, losing or winning is pretty normal for an athlete’s career.”

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