It was a tough day for the remaining Oceania players at the LI-NING BWF World Junior Championships, with some fierce competition and close results as the event refines down to the later rounds and quarter-finals.
Australia and New Zealand each saw a mixed doubles pair progress into round two, with both pairs missing out to Chinese Taipei and Mexican oppositions:
- Chen Shiau Cheng/Wang Yu Qiao, Chinese Taipei (ranked 325/1493 respectively) vs Ryan Tong/Ella Smith, New Zealand (357/143) 21-9 21-17
- Armando Gaitan/Jessica Jazmin Bautista Trigueros, Mexico (418) vs Ryan Venpin/Kaitlyn Ea, Australia (1400) 21-14 21-17
Meanwhile, Zecily Fung’s impressive run came to an end as she met the third seed and reigning Youth Olympics Champion, Goh Jin Wei from Malaysia – ending with a 21-5 21-6 result.
Our players have gained some great experience from their time at the Championships:
“I really enjoyed getting to see the other countries play and seeing how much we have to improve to compete with other countries. I have learnt that preparation is key to achieve results at this level”, says Jacqueline Yu (New Zealand).
“The most enjoyable part was being able to play against some of the top players from different countries. I’ve learnt how important endurance and speed are throughout the game – which is an area I need to improve on”, says Peter Yan (Australia).
There is still plenty of action to watch, with four days of competition remaining! You can keep track of the latest live rules and draws at the LI-NING BWF World Junior Championships 2018 on Tournament Software.
