Top-ranked Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia crashed out of the India Open badminton tournament in the first round yesterday, losing to Chen Long of China.
World No. 147 Chen, the 2007 world junior champion, rallied after losing the first game to pull off a stunning 7-21, 21-16, 21-18 victory over Lee, runner-up at All England and winner of the Swiss Open this year.
Chen took full advantage of the erratic Lee, who blamed the defeat on weakness caused by a bout of food poisoning.
PHOTO: AP
“I’ve been on medication since I came here,” the No. 1-ranked Lee said. “I must have eaten something that did not agree with me during my flight here from Switzerland and wasn’t feeling anywhere near my best.”
Lee also slammed the officials who umpired his match.
“The umpires are not fit for a tournament of this standard, they need to improve their quality of judgement,” he said.
Lee has been in good form this year, reaching the All England final where he lost to Lin Dan of China, but rebounded to defeat the same opponent in the title contest at the Swiss Open.
Chen has steadily moved up the world rankings after missing most of last year with an ankle injury.
Second-seeded Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia faced no difficulty in reaching the second round with a 21-8, 21-13 win over qualifier K. Nandagopal of India.
Third-seeded Chetan Anand of India had to work hard for a 14-21, 21-9, 22-20 victory over Lok Chong Chieh of Malaysia.
The Indian Open suffered a blow at the weekend when it was announced that English players Carl Baxter and Rajiv Ouseph, seeded 11 and 12 respectively, had been withdrawn from the tournament.
This followed advice from the British Foreign Office which voiced concerns over safety in light of recent terror attacks in the subcontinent.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STAFF WRITER
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