After four straight losses to Li Shi Feng when he was unable to take a game, Leong Jun Hao finally broke through in the first round of the YONEX-SUNRISE India Open 2025. The key, said the No.28 Malaysian, was patience as he weathered an early setback to grind out a 18-21 21-17 21-17 upset of the No.6.
“I played him four times and never won. Today I think I did great on what I had planned before the match, so I’m happy I managed to execute it,” said Leong. “In the first game I was not so patient; I tried to be patient in the second and third and play more strokes, and that worked.
“For sure, it means a lot to me, because I’d never even take a game off him and today I won the match. He’s a tough opponent, physically and in the strokes he plays – he’s an attacking, all-round player. Today I just played with what I have and did my best.
“Since Yogendran (Krishnan) took over as coach five months ago, we have been working together on and off court, specifically on what I need. Every top player has their own strength and so we are working on specific things.”
Among other significant results of the day was new pair Kang Min Hyuk/Jin Yong’s defeat of the in-form Kim Astrup/Anders Skaarup Rasmussen, 20-22 21-19 21-16. Kang said Korea’s pairs had been rearranged on a test basis for the early season, and for now at least, the experiment seemed to be working well, with his regular partner Seo Seung Jae having won the PETRONAS Malaysia Open 2025 last week with Kim Won Ho.
“We’re very happy to beat these strong opponents. But as we are a new pair, we are still working on a lot of things. Our partnerships have been tweaked on a testing basis, but I don’t know how long we will continue. Coming back to the India Open that I won last year, there are happy memories. We have started well here, so it’s a happy moment once again.”
WHAT OTHERS SAID