PETALING JAYA: National singles shuttler Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin put up a commendable performance before losing to French ace Christo Popov in the second round of the Hong Kong Open today.
The world No 43 player fell 17-21, 19-21 in 40 minutes to the 10th-ranked French shuttler at the Hong Kong Coliseum.
But despite the scoreline, the Malaysian gave Popov a run for his money throughout the match.
Aidil, 25, stunned Taiwan’s Chi Yu Jen in a hard-fought three-game opening round match that lasted over an hour yesterday.
Malaysia is nonetheless assured of a berth in the men’s singles quarter-finals as Leong Jun Hao will be taking on compatriot Justin Hoh in a second-round match later this evening.
The 21-year-old Justin, who is ranked 39th, made heads turn in this tournament after staging a major upset by defeating the much higher-ranked Toma Junior Popov of France in the first round.