Lee Chong Wei (DUORA 10, New Shoes) started his journey to his sixth YONEX OPEN JAPAN title early on in the afternoon, blasting through his two qualifying matches, booking a spot in the main draw. He faced off against Scotland’s Alistair Casey, triumphing in 23 minutes at 21-3, 21-3. He went on to face Korea’s Kwang Hee Heo in the following match, which the Malaysian national hero also took in a swift manner within 28 minutes, recording a final score of 21-10, 21-12.
“This is actually my first time competing in the YONEX OPEN JAPAN qualifiers,” commented Chong Wei with a laugh, “I have a lot of fans in Japan, which really motivates me.”
Chong Wei, who has been using the DUORA 10 as of the World Championships, commented on the new racquet, mentioning that it greatly helps with his backhand.
The first round will see Chong Wei up against Thailand’s Boonsak Ponsana late in the afternoon in what is sure to be an electrifying matchup.
Other round 1 matches to keep an eye on include two-time world champion Carolina Marin (NANORAY Z-SPEED, SHB-02LX) clash with local talent Yui Hashimoto. In men’s doubles, Mathias Boe (ARCSABER 11, SHBSC6iEX) and Carsten Mogensen (ARCSABER 11, SHB87LTD) will face off against Liu Xiaolong and Qiu Zihan in a repeat of this year’s BWF World Championships.