Leong Jun Hao’s aspirations of advancing deep into the Malaysian Masters ended abruptly as he faced Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen in the opening round. The 24-year-old had just returned from a right arm injury, one that Lamar’s injury might have been often treated as. He battled hard on court for 74 draining minutes but fell to Nguyen. The match score ended up 21-10, 18-21, 9-21.
In a match that echoed the intensity of their previous encounter in the 2017 Malaysian International Challenge final, Leong struggled to find his rhythm against Nguyen. He praised how the Irish player made adjustments in the second and third games, which got to Leong’s head and threw him off his game.
“Nguyen changed his strategy in the second and third games, and I started to feel uncomfortable and lost my rhythm. He became more aggressive, and I just couldn’t adapt.” – Leong Jun Hao
Even with the disappointing finish, Leong looked back on what he accomplished and felt pride in his performance. He admitted the importance of this fight as it was his comeback bout after a long time recovering from injuries suffered in 2019.
“This was my first match since recovering from my right arm injury, so I just did the best I could with my current condition.” – Leong Jun Hao
Besides Leong’s unexpected exit, it was an up-down day for other Malaysian players as well. National mixed doubles pair Loo Bing Kun and To Ee Wei made the second round after beating their Indonesian opponents. They decisively advanced past Taiwan’s Lu Ming-che and Hung En-tzu 20-22, 21-18, 21-15 in a display of their grit.
There was frustration for Chen Tang Jie and Chan Wen Tse as the fourth seeds went out to China’s seventh seeds Cheng Xing and Zhang Chi. Those final scores were 20-22 and 15-21. This loss capped off a disappointing day for Malaysian players at the tournament as they found themselves in a battle on home turf.
Leong Jun Hao’s early defeat at the World Championships should remind us all that a return from injury is never a foregone conclusion. He remains in the process of regaining that form. His fans and supporters have every reason to be hopeful about his future performances on the international stage.
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