Badminton: Singapore's Loh Kean Yew, Yeo Jia Min progress to quarter-finals of Germany tournament
SINGAPORE: Badminton players Loh Kean Yew and Yeo Jia Min progressed to the quarter finals of the Hylo Open in Saarbrucken, Germany on Thursday (Nov 4) after wins against higher-ranked opponents.
Loh, who is unseeded in the tournament, beat Frenchman Toma Junior Popov 21-15, 11-21, 21-15 in the men's singles. The match-up was a hard-fought contest which spanned almost an hour. Popov is ranked 35th in the world, while Loh is four places below.
His victory follows a stunning upset of Chou Tien-chen in the opening round of the tournament. Loh defeated the world No 4 and top seed 21-18, 21-13.
In the women's singles, Yeo beat Indonesia's world No 23 Gregoria Mariska Tunjung 21-19, 21-17 in the women's singles event. The 22-year-old Singaporean is ranked 26th in the world.
Yeo had beaten the Indonesian last month at the French Open but her run ended in the quarter-finals after losing An Se-young.
Yeo will come up against Belgium's Lianne Tan, whom she beat at the French Open.
Loh will face Denmark's Rasmus Gemke later today for a spot in the semi-finals. Gemke is the tournament's fifth seed.