High for June but low for Jun in Thailand tournament

PETALING JAYA: Professional singles shuttler Cheam June Wei got off to a good start but it was a low blow for Leong Jun Hao in the Thailand Masters.

The world No. 61 June Wei showed he had been slowly finding his feet again as he stormed into the second round after beating world No. 50 Jan Louda of Czech Republic 15-21, 21-10, 21-15 in Bangkok yesterday.

It was June Wei’s second consecutive victory over Louda after triumphing in the Nantes International Challenge in June 2022.

“The match was quite tough and my opponent (Louda) played quite well,” said June Wei in a post-match interview with SPOTV.

“He kept pressuring me and played in long rallies throughout the match.

“This is my first tournament and I’m slow in climbing the world rankings but I’m hoping to break into the top 30 by this year.

“The overall environment here was good, just a little windy. I’ve prepared quite well for this tournament, so I hope I can achieve good results here.”

June Wei has to overcome world No. 51 Mark Caljouw of France next to keep a quarter-final hope alive.

Their only previous meeting was in the Dutch Junior International, where June Wei emerged victorious, but it was 11 years ago.

June Wei, who had a tough time without a sponsor for five months, was thrown a lifeline by former international Ong Ewe Hock, who secured a deal under RedOne in October.

The assistance seemed to have motivated June Wei to perform better in his tournaments.

June Wei crashed out in the second round of the Syed Modi International, which is his first tournament after receiving the sponsorship, but bounced back stronger to reach the semi-finals of the Indian Masters in December.

June Wei is the sole representative in the singles event after world No. 37 Jun Hao went down 14-21, 17-21 to India’s world No. 70 S. Sankar Muthusamy Subramaniam.

It was a disappointing outcome for Jun Hao as he had hoped for a good build-up before playing in the Asia Team Championships in Setia Alam from Feb 13-18.

Malaysia’s campaign came to an end in the women’s singles category after world No. 75 Wong Ling Ching succumbed 10-21, 16-21 to India’s world No. 61 Ashmita Chaliha.

Earlier, world No. 57 K. Letshanaa lost 13-21, 9-21 to homester and world No. 13 Ratchanok Intanon.