Superstars Kento Momota and Yuta Watanabe/Arisa Higashino surprisingly stumbled in straight games to unseeded compatriots in their first YONEX GAINWARD German Open 2022 matches yesterday.

While Tokyo 2020 mixed doubles bronze medallists Watanabe/Higashino put up some fight against Yuki Kaneko/Misaki Matsutomo before going down 21-15 21-19, defending champion and second seed Momota’s 23-21 21-9 loss to world No.19 Kenta Nishimoto in a repeat of the previous final in 2019 was unexpectedly tame.

Joining them at the exit door was recently-crowned men’s singles world champion Loh Kean Yew, who lost 21-12 16-21 18-21 to Brian Yang. It is the Singaporean’s first defeat to the Canadian world No.33 in four meetings.

Japan’s other contenders however – new world champions Akane Yamaguchi and Takuro Hoki/Yugo Kobayashi – showed the poise of winners to secure their passage into the next round.

Yamaguchi, queen of the last three German Opens, saw off Kristin Kuuba 21-6 21-14 while Hoki/Kobayashi got the better of Tan Kian Meng/Tan Wee Kiong 21-13 21-13.

Fellow winners at the TotalEnergies BWF World Championships 2021, Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan also advanced following their 21-15 21-9 victory over English pair Chloe Birch/Jessica Pugh.

Seeds out

• Scottish pairs continue to be the kryptonite of Malaysian shuttlers in Muelheim an der Ruhr as women’s doubles eighth seeds Tan Pearly and Thinaah Muralitharan were humbled by Julie Macpherson and Ciara Torrance in straight games. A day earlier, Macpherson combined with Adam Hall in mixed doubles to send Ong Yew Sin/Goh Liu Ying home.

NOTEWORTHY:

• In only their second tournament since winning the mixed doubles gold at Tokyo 2020, Wang Yi Lyu/Huang Dong Ping cleared their first round hurdle by defeating Mathias Thyrri/Amalie Magelund 21-14 21-18.

→ Day 2 Results

→ Day 3 Order of Play