K. Letshanaa's Japan Open campaign came to an early end after the Malaysian women's singles shuttler struggled to reproduce her training form in a first-round defeat to South Korea's Kim Ga-eun.
The 21-year-old, who entered the Super 750 tournament well prepared under coach Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin, was beaten 21-16, 21-12 by the world No. 14 Korean in just 32 minutes at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium.
Playing Kim for the first time, Letshanaa admitted she found it difficult to adjust to her opponent's style and struggled to find solutions during the match. Several unforced errors also affected her confidence as she was unable to build momentum after falling behind.
The Malaysian shuttler said her preparation had gone well leading into the tournament, but she was unable to replicate that level of performance on court. Despite the disappointing result, she viewed the experience as valuable, especially as she continues to gain exposure at higher-level events such as Super 750 and Super 1000 tournaments.
Letshanaa's defeat marked the end of Malaysia's women's singles campaign at the Japan Open, following Wong Ling Ching's loss to former world No. 1 P. V. Sindhu in the opening round.
Both Malaysian players will now shift their focus to the China Open, which begins next week. Letshanaa will face American Zhang Beiwen in the first round, while Ling Ching has been drawn against South Korea's Sim Yu-jin. The tournament will serve as their final preparation event before the World Championships in New Delhi from Aug. 17 to 23.
