NINGBO, China, April 11 (Xinhua) -- World No. 1 Shi Yuqi was eliminated from the 2025 Badminton Asian Championships on Friday after a hard-fought quarterfinal defeat to Singapore's Loh Kean Yew.

The Chinese star, playing on home soil, narrowly lost the opening game 21-19 before bouncing back to take the second 21-13. However, Loh seized control in the decider, overpowering Shi 21-16 to secure the victory.

Shi, who claimed his second All England title last month, admitted his physical condition hampered his performance.

"Today, my body wasn't at its best, and I couldn't play to my strengths," said Shi.

Loh, thrilled with the upset, called the victory a "personal milestone." "Winning against Shi is incredibly tough, so this means a lot to me," he said.

The Singaporean will next face Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn, who outlasted Japan's Kenta Nishimoto in a grueling 88-minute battle.

In the other half of the draw, China's Lu Guangzu and Li Shifeng secured semifinal spots after defeating Indonesia's Jonatan Christie and Japan's Kodai Naraoka, respectively. They will clash for a final berth on Saturday.

China's women's doubles duos continued their dominant run, with Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning, Zhang Shuxian and Zheng Yu, and Olympic gold medalists Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan all securing semifinal berths. Meanwhile, Chen Boyang and Liu Yi advanced to the last four by beating Malaysia's Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin in the men's doubles.

However, Chinese mixed pair Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping were eliminated by Japan's Hiroki Midorikawa and Natsu Saito 21-16, 18-21, 13-21. Enditem

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