TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwanese badminton star Chou Tien-chen (周天成) was defeated by Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew (駱建佑) on Thursday (Nov. 4).

The 2021 Hylo Open, which carries a total of US$320,000 (NT$8.9 million) in prize money, is being held in the German city of Saarbrücken. Though Chou is ranked fourth in the world and was the favorite for the open, he unexpectedly lost his first-round match, according to a CNA report.

At the opening of the first set, the two players fought hard to gain an early lead.

Midway through, Chou held a slight lead of 13-12. He soon caved to the pressure, however, as Loh won consecutive points and gained momentum.

Chou staged a valiant effort to catch up, and though he crawled his way back to trail by only one point with 18-19, he lost two points in a row and the first set.

The second set was also hotly contested, with Chou leading by five points at one stage, but eventually Loh proved too much for him, beating the Taiwanese player by eight points.