Only women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah, mixed doubles shuttlers Goh Soon Huat- Shevon Lai Jemie and Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei, and men’s doubles duo Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub-Tan Wee Kiong are left in the running.

Those eliminated early this morning included men’s singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao who suffered his sixth first-round exit this season, losing to China’s world No 4 Li Shi Feng in straight games. It was the eighth time he had lost to the Chinese player in nine encounters.

Others were men’s doubles shuttlers Wan Arif Wan Junaidi-Yap Roy King and Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi, women’s doubles pair Go Pei Kee-Teoh Mei Xing, and mixed doubles pair Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien.

Malaysia also suffered a major blow last night when men’s world No 3 doubles shuttlers Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani fell to in-form English pair Ben Lane-Sean Vendy in three games.

Hours earlier, Malaysia’s top pair and world No 2 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik also lost in the first round to a new Indonesian combination in straight games. Choong Hon Jian-Haikal Nazri were likewise first-round casualties the day before.

Azriyn Ayub-Wee Kiong face a Herculean task in the second round where they will meet world No 1 pair Kim Won Ho-Seo Seung Jae. This will be their first encounter.

World Championships runners-up Pearly-Thinaah will also face a tough challenge in Japan’s new pairing of Arisa Igarashi-Chiharu Shida, whom they are likewise meeting for the first time.

Soon Huat-Shevon will battle it out with another Japanese pair, Yuichi Shimogami- Sayaka Hobara. This is also their first encounter.

World champions Tang Jie-Ee Wei will take on China’s Gao Jia Xuan-Wu Meng Ying, whom they played at the China Open in July where they won in straight games.