Lucknow: Malaysian shuttlers Zulfadli Zulkiffli got the better of his compatriot Goh Giap Chin 13-21, 21-16, 21-16 to advance to the quarter-finals of Syed Modi GP on Thursday.
Zulkiffli will play No. 11 seed Boonsak Ponsana on Friday.
Another Malaysian men’s singles player Goh Soon Huat managed to pull off an upset by stunning South Korean Jeon Hyeok Jin 21-13, 21-16 to set up a quarterfinal clash with No. 1 seed Kidambi Srikanth of India.
Meanwhile, Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin, and Chong Wei Feng’s journey ended in the 3rd round when the Malaysia Masters Grand Prix Gold runner-up Zainuddin gave Srikanth a chance to exact revenge after Srikanth lost to Zainuddin at last week’s Malaysia Masters’ semi-finals. Guided by his calm composure, Srikanth capped off a dominant performance to beat Zainuddin in straight sets 21-9, 21-12.
On the same token, Chong Wei Feng put up strong resistance before finally succumbing to China’s Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games gold medalist Shi Yuqi 21-18, 21-19 in 49 minutes.
In the men’s doubles competition, Malaysia’s Goh V Shem/Tan Wee Kiong upset No.4 seeds and the 2015 World Champions Ko Sung Hyun/Shin Baek Cheol 21-14, 14-21, 24-22 to set up a quarterfinal meeting with No.6 seeds Vladimir Ivanov/Ivan Sozonov of Russia.
Chan Peng Soon/Goh Liu Ying also cruised to the quarter-finals after defeating Indian pair Pranaav Jerry Chopra/Nelakurihi Sikki Reddy, 21-14, 21-17. Chan and Goh will take on Japan’s Kenta Kazuno/Ayane Kurihara on Friday.
Malaysia’s 15-year-old women’s singles player Goh Jin Wei remained upbeat despite dropping her second round match against No. 6 seed Yui Hashimoto of Japan 17-21, 10-21.
“There are still plenty to look forward to despite the loss,” Goh Jin Wei wrote in her Facebook after the match.
