Lin Dan suffers first round exit, Chen Long advances with hard-fought win

FUZHOU - Chinese badminton star Lin Dan suffered the 8th first round exit this season in 2018 HSBC Badminton World Federation World Tour Super 750 China Fuzhou Open here on Tuesday, while Olympic gold medalist Chen Long advanced to the next round with a hard-fought 106 minutes win over Kantaphon Wangcharoen of Thailand.

Ranking the world number 13, Lin lost to the current world number one Kento Momota of Japan 2-0. He will meet again the Japanese shuttler in the first round of Hong Kong Open next week.

In Tuesday's match, Lin managed to lead 11-10 in the first set before Kento Momota pulled away to win the set 21-15. In the second, Lin missed the key shot and also the chance to turn down the game.

"I really wanted to win this game. I was very much involved and played aggressivly," said Lin, "the confidence went more to his side after he won the first set. I didn't grab the chance while I led 17-13 in the second set. We'll meet again next week. I hope I'll play stronger and put more pressure on him."

Sixth seed Chen Long met the challenge from young shuttler Kantaphon Wangcharoen who once defeated Chen at Malaysian Open in June. Their second encounter runs fiercely for 106 minutes.

Chen lost the first set 21-17 but dominated the second set to win 21-12. He led the decider 13-6 before conceding 10 straight points. Chen prevailed with his smart shot at the crucial moments to seal the match.

"I played so many games and perhaps this is the longest one," said Chen, "it's getting tougher and tougher to win a point in the last few minutes. It should not have been this long if I played more cautiously."

All the Chinese shuttlers in women's singles, men's doubles and mixed doubles showing up on Tuesday advanced to the next round.