Loh Kean Yew's quarter-final streak ends after Indonesia Masters loss
Limp defeat by Indonesia's Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo end his participation at the round-of-16 stage in Jakarta
SINGAPORE — Loh Kean Yew's streak of reaching every tournament quarter-final this year came to an end on Thursday (26 January), when he crashed out in the round of 16 at the Indonesia Masters.
The world No.8 was out of sorts as he lost to Indonesia world No.23 Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo 18-21, 15-21 in just 42 minutes at the Istora Gelora Bung Karno in Jakarta.
It was nowhere near his impressive win over China's Li Shifeng in his opening-round match a day earlier, and he fell behind by as many as 9-20 in the second game before making the scoreline a little more respectable.
The former world champion's lacklustre display cost him a chance to end his title drought in the BWF World Tour circuit that has stretched all the way back to when he won his monumental world title in December 2021.
It is all the more galling as Kunlavut Vitidsarn, the Thai world No.6 who had eliminated him in both his first two tournaments of the year - the Malaysia Open and the India Open - had already withdrawn from the Indonesia Masters after winning the India Open last week.
Singapore's other representative at the Indonesia Masters, women's singles shuttler Yeo Jia Min, was narrowly defeated in her opening-round match against Denmark's Line Christophersen on Wednesday, losing 20-22, 21-14, 20-22.
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