World No 29 Jun Hao was a pale shadow of the player who defeated top-ranked players to emerge runner-up at the Kumamoto Masters in Japan last week.

Today, he was totally outclassed by Obayashi 21-12, 21-11 in 38 minutes.

This was the Malaysian’s second defeat at the hands of Obayashi, the world No 36, in their three meetings so far.

Earlier, fellow men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia also crashed out in the first round after going down to India’s Lakshya Sen 14-21, 21-13, 13-21 in a match that lasted 57 minutes.

The China Masters is the final chance for shuttlers to amass points to qualify for the World Tour Finals (WTF) in Hangzhou, China next month.

While Jun Hao was not in contention, Zii Jia who is currently ranked sixth in the WTF qualifiers list, will go through if his closest rivals fail to enter the later stages of the China Masters.

Separately, women’s doubles shuttlers Pearly Tan-M Thinaah, who have already booked a place in the WTF, cruised into the second round of the China Masters by defeating the unranked Chinese pair Ding Ke Yun-Wang Yi Duo 21-16, 21-14.

Two of Malaysia’s mixed-doubles pairs also made it to the next round.

Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin defeated Taiwan’s Liu Kuang Heng-Jheng Yu Chieh 21-17, 21-12 while Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien beat Algerian pair Koceila Mammeri-Tanina Violette Mammeri 21-15, 21-13.

However, Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai and Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing were eliminated in the mixed doubles event. Soon-Huat-Shevon have already qualified for the WTF.

World No 24 men’s doubles pair Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi came close to creating an upset in ther match with Denmark’s Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in the opening round, but ended up losing in the rubber set.

After playing for 70 minutes, they lost 24-22, 18-21, 15-21, making it the third time they have lost to the world No 3 pair in five meetings.