German Open: Japanese Favourites, Loh Bow Out Early
Superstars Kento Momota and Yuta Watanabe/Arisa Higashino surprisingly stumbled in straight games to unseeded compatriots in their first YONEX GAINWARD German Open 2022 matches yesterday.
· BWF STAFF
While Tokyo 2020 mixed doubles bronze medallists Watanabe/Higashino put up some fight against Yuki Kaneko/Misaki Matsutomo before going down 21-15 21-19, defending champion and second seed Momota's 23-21 21-9 loss to world No.19 Kenta Nishimoto in a repeat of the previous final in 2019 was unexpectedly tame.
Joining them at the exit door was recently-crowned men’s singles world champion Loh Kean Yew, who lost 21-12 16-21 18-21 to Brian Yang. It is the Singaporean’s first defeat to the Canadian world No.33 in four meetings.
Japan's other contenders however – new world champions Akane Yamaguchi and Takuro Hoki/Yugo Kobayashi – showed the poise of winners to secure their passage into the next round.
- Kento Momota
- Yuta Watanabe
- Arisa Igarashi
- Yuki Kaneko
- Misaki Matsutomo
- Kenta Nishimoto
- Loh Kean Yew
- Brian Yang
- Akane Yamaguchi
- Takuro Hoki
- Yugo Kobayashi
- Kristin Kuuba
- Tan Kian Meng
- Tan Wee Kiong
- Chen Qing Chen
- Jia Yi Fan
- Chloe Coney
- Jessica Pugh
- Pearly Tan
- Thinaah Muralitharan
- Julie Macpherson
- Ciara Torrance
- Adam Hall
- Ong Yew Sin
- Goh Liu Ying
- Wang Yi Lyu
- Huang Dong Ping
- Mathias Thyrri
- Amalie Magelund