After losing his men's doubles match at the BWF Denmark Open, Chinese shuttler He Jiting retired from the tournament on Wednesday due to injury.
He and former partner Tan Qiang had a 5-0 record against Japan's Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi across previous encounters, but were outclassed by the same opponents on Wednesday in straight sets 21-13, 21-10.
"I was a bit exhausted, but that's not an excuse, because our opponents are the same. It's fair," said 23-year-old He.
"I did not play much in the cup games, maybe I rested too long," said Tan, "We were not feeling right until the second set, but it's too late."
Paired with Liu Xuanxuan in the mixed doubles, He announced his retirement from the tournament while trailing 6-1 in the first set to Malaysian duo Goh Soon Huat and Shevon Jemie Lai.
Liu progressed to the round of 16 in the women's doubles with partner Xia Yuting, overpowering the Canadian duo Rachel Honderich and Kristen Tsai 21-11, 21-19.
20-year-old talent Feng Yanzhe, paired with Du Yue in his BWF tournament debut, edged India's pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa 21-17, 14-21, 21-11 in the mixed doubles.
Lu Guangzu had a good start in his men's singles match against Brice Leverdez but missed a key point and lost the first set 23-21. Undeterred, the 25-year-old raised his game against his French opponent and grabbed the following two sets 21-10, 21-6.
"It's a real challenge to play so many tight games in a row," said Lu, "I'm feeling tired and a bit relaxed after the Sudirman Cup and Thomas Cup tournaments. It's important to keep a good mentality."
He Bingjiao won in straight sets against Singapore's 22-year-old Yeo Jia Min 21-14, 21-17 in the first encounter between them, booking a berth in the second round.
Wang Zhiyi edged Iris Wang of the United States 21-19, 22-20. In the women's singles match between Han Yue and Sayaka Takahashi, the 22-year-old Chinese lost their fifth encounter 21-15, 18-21, 16-21.
"It looks like I couldn't keep up with Sayaka today," said Han, "I felt the shuttle speed was a bit fast, or maybe it's because I haven't played for a while. I was impatient to counterattack and the moves are just not right."
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