Badminton: Jason Teh’s title dream continues, Joel Koh falls short in Scottish Open semis

SINGAPORE: Singapore badminton player Jason Teh’s dream of a first major title continues after he lost to Lakshya Sen of India in the men’s singles finals of the Syed Modi International played at the Babu Banarasi Das Indoor Stadium in Lucknow, India, on Dec 1.

Teh, the fourth seed in the competition, put up a valiant fight but ultimately succumbed in straight sets against the top seed, losing 6-21, 7-21.

This is Sen’s third consecutive win against the Singapore shuttler. The two first met at the Dutch Open 2021 and again during the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham two years ago.

A dejected Teh expressed his disappointment in a post-tournament interview posted by the Singapore Badminton Association, saying: “I’ve lost my match, and I don’t really know how to describe how I’m feeling now. I just think that my performance was rather disappointing today.”

Although Teh would have been pleased with a win, he emphasised that his focus is not merely on winning medals but also on delivering quality performances. 

“What matters most to me is not silver or gold. But it’s the quality of my play and being able to play to the best of my ability. But I don’t think today I was anywhere near achieving that,” shared the world number 33.

Teh started the campaign with a 21-13, 21-18 win over Ade Resky Dwicahyo of Azerbaijan. In the following round, he won 21-17, 21-11 against Malaysia’s Cheam June Wei.

The Singapore shuttler was pushed to the limit in a thrilling quarter-final encounter, edging past India’s Satish Kumar 21-10, 22-20 in a hard-fought victory that tested the Singaporean shuttler’s resolve and resilience

In a semi-final upset, Teh toppled second-seeded Priyanshu Rajawat 21-13, 21-19, producing a clinical and composed display that sealed his spot in the final in just 48 minutes.

“I will keep learning and I just hope to do better next time. I have two more tournaments coming up, which are the Guwahati and Odisha Masters. Me and my teammates will be competing, so hope you guys can tune in,” added Teh.

The Guwahati Masters, with a total prize pool of US$100,000, will be held at the Sarju Sarai Indoor Sports Complex, Assam, India, from Dec 3 to 8. Teh will be facing Hu Zhe An (China) in the Round of 32 on Dec 4. 

Meanwhile, fellow Singaporean Joel Koh had a commendable run at the Scottish Open 2024, reaching the semi-finals before losing 16-21, 16-21 to Dutch player Joran Kweekel.

“Unfortunately, it ended for me in the semi-finals against a well-playing Dutch opponent. I feel that he was doing tactically better than me, and I felt that made a difference in the match,” reflected Koh on his performance against Kweekel.

Despite not advancing to the finals, Koh remained positive, adding: “Although I didn’t make it to the finals, it was still a good week with a couple of wins along the way and many positive things to be taken away.”