Rajiv Ouseph produced his best performance of this year’s BWF Super Series after dumping world bronze medallist Du Pengyu out of the Hong Kong Open but was to progress no further.
Ouseph, a Commonwealth men’s singles badminton silver medallist but who was knocked out early at the London 2012 Olympics last summer, defeated Du in straight sets in 36 minutes.
The 27-year-old overcame an 11-6 deficit to take the first set 21-15 before repeating the trick, albeit this time from just 8-5 down, to win the second 21-14 for a place in the second round.
Du represents a significant scalp for Ouseph, not just because he was the fourth seed at the Hong Kong Open but because he is also ranked third in the world in the men’s singles.
However Ouseph was to fall in the next round against Hans-Kristian Vittinghus of Denmark, winning the first set 21-12 before surrendering the last two 21-19 and 21-14.
Still it marks a positive week for Badminton England with mixed doubles pairing Chris Adcock and Gabby White now up to seventh in the world themselves; Ouseph ranked 22nd.
© Sportsbeat 2013