Saarbrücken, Germany — It was a mixed day for Malaysian shuttlers at the 2025 Hylo Open, as Leong Jun Hao and Kok Jing Hong both bowed out in the men’s singles first round, while Karupathevan Letshanaa powered through to the women’s singles round of 16.
In a hard-fought three-game battle, Leong Jun Hao was edged out by India’s S. Sankar Muthusamy Subramanian 14–21, 21–18, 16–21 after 63 minutes of play. The defeat marked Leong’s second consecutive loss to the Indian, following their previous encounter at the 2024 Thailand Masters.
Leong’s Narrow Defeat
Leong started strongly in the opening game, leading 10–6 before Sankar launched a strong comeback to tie 13–13 and then pull away with an 8–1 run to take it 21–14.
Watch Highlights of Leong Jun Hao vs. S.Sankar Muthusamy SUBRA in the 2025 Hylo Open first round:
The Malaysian bounced back in the second game, racing to a 6–0 start and fending off a late surge from Sankar to win 21–18 and force a decider. However, Sankar regrouped in the third game, breaking away from an 8–8 tie to lead decisively. Despite Leong’s late push to close the gap at 16–17, the Indian finished with four straight points to seal victory 21–16.
Sankar will face compatriot Lakshya Sen in an all-Indian round of 16 clash after Sen overcame France’s Christo Popov 21–16, 22–20.
Kok Jing Hong Falls to Thailand’s Kantaphon Wangcharoen
Another Malaysian men’s singles player, Kok Jing Hong, also exited early after losing 19–21, 18–21 to Thailand’s Kantaphon Wangcharoen in straight games. Kok showed moments of brilliance but struggled to convert crucial points against the Thai’s aggressive style, bowing out in 43 minutes.
Letshanaa Shines, Cruises Into Last 16
There was better news in the women’s singles draw, as Malaysia’s Karupathevan Letshanaa cruised past Huang Ching Ping of Chinese Taipei 21–9, 21–15 in just 34 minutes to advance to the round of 16.
The match was a rematch of their 2023 Korea Open encounter, which Letshanaa also won — this time, she was even more dominant.
After an even start at 3–3 in the first game, Letshanaa took full control, pulling away to 16–6 before closing it 21–9. She continued her momentum into the second game, opening with a 9–1 lead and extending it to 12–2 before a brief lapse allowed her opponent to narrow the margin. However, Letshanaa steadied herself to wrap up the match 21–15.
The 20-year-old Malaysian will next face No. 2 seed Mia Blichfeldt of Denmark, who advanced by beating Ukraine’s Yevheniia Kantemyr 21–11, 21–7.
Despite early exits in the men’s singles, Letshanaa’s strong showing gives Malaysia hope of a deeper run in the women’s competition at the 2025 Hylo Open — a Super 500 event on the BWF World Tour calendar.
