All posts tagged: Kean

Why HS Prannoy looked at the roof during his loss to Loh Kean Yew

Why HS Prannoy looked at the roof during his loss to Loh Kean Yew

Published by Webster

4 min readMay 28, 2026 07:05 PM IST When two smashes inexplicably went into the net as HS Prannoy led 14-11 in the decider against Loh Kean Yew, the Indian who had been playing very steady, looked up quizically. Not heavenwards asking for divine intervention, more like there was an invisible A/C vent above the net blasting the shuttle down. He went on to lose the match to the local Singaporean who was imploding right until that point with his errors, 18-21, 21-16, 21-15. Cruising as he was, Prannoy couldn’t have explained going from 14-11 to 15-21, with 7 of those 10 points lost, dumped into the net, dipping down right before crossing the meshing, as he lost Round 2 of the Super 750, while looking very controlled till that juncture. Prannoy tried everything as soon as those two smashes plunged into the net. He attempted a couple of high parallels, which also ended up in the net. He even cut the distance and played from closer to the net. But try as he might, …

Kiran George stuns former world champion Loh Kean Yew

Kiran George stuns former world champion Loh Kean Yew

Published by Webster

India’s campaign at the BWF Swiss Open 2026 saw mixed results on Wednesday, highlighted by a major upset from Kiran George, who defeated former world champion Loh Kean Yew to advance to the next round. Kiran produced one of the standout performances of the day, overcoming the Singaporean star in a hard-fought contest to move into the Round of 16 in Basel. However, it was a disappointing outing for Kidambi Srikanth, who bowed out in the opening round after losing to Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie Gunawan in three games. Srikanth started strongly by taking the first game 21-15 but struggled to maintain the momentum as Gunawan fought back to win the next two games 21-12, 21-4 and seal the match. Earlier in the day, India had already suffered several setbacks in singles competition. Ayush Shetty lost 18-21, 19-21 to Canada’s Brian Yang, while Tanvi Sharma was beaten 21-11, 21-10 by Indonesia’s Putri Kusuma Wardani. India was also dealt a blow when HS Prannoy withdrew from his opening-round match, giving a walkover to Japan’s Koki Watanabe. Despite …

“I breathe less” – Former world champion Loh Kean Yew on tackling pollution at 2026 India Open

“I breathe less” – Former world champion Loh Kean Yew on tackling pollution at 2026 India Open

Published by Webster

Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew advanced to the quarter-finals of the 2026 India Open following a come-from-behind 18-21, 21-19, 21-14 win over HS Prannoy in Delhi on Thursday. Speaking to the media after his third win in seven meetings against the Indian veteran, Loh opened up about battling the harsh conditions Delhi has to offer with severe cold and extremely poor air quality index. “I breathe less,” said Loh. “I just wear my mask when I can.” “Other than that, I try to stay indoor as much as possible, but that’s the only thing I can do,” he further reflected. Loh, the 2021 men’s singles world champion, further noted that all the players competing are struggling to maintain their stamina. “I mean, everyone’s stamina just dropped two levels,” he said. “My body was good in Malaysia [Malaysia Open Super 1000 last week] until I came here. The weather is not good. My health dropped quite a bit. “I’m surprised you guys [media persons] are okay,” he added with a chuckle. Loh’s statement comes just a day …

‘Everyone’s stamina drops two levels’, former World Champion Loh Kean Yew takes cheeky dig at Delhi weather

‘Everyone’s stamina drops two levels’, former World Champion Loh Kean Yew takes cheeky dig at Delhi weather

Published by Webster

Former World champion Loh Kean Yew took a hilarious dig on the Delhi weather after defeating HS Prannoy in the pre-quarterfinal of the India Open Super 750 on Thursday. When asked the reason behind his good record in India, Loh cheekily said,” I don’t know, probably the weather here. Everyone’s stamina drops like two levels in these conditions with the haze going on.” “I was good in Malaysia but my health has dropped a bit after landing here,” he added further. Loh played out a three-game thriller against local favourite Prannoy, winning 18-21, 21-19, 21-14. “I breathe less here and use a mask whenever I go out. Other than that, I try to stay indoor as much as possible. But there is nothing I can do,” Loh said when asked how he adapts to this weather. He questioned how the media is managing to stay in such conditions The tournament is being hosted in a new playing arena and both shuttlers face difficulty while trying to control the shuttle. Story continues below this ad “There …

Bird droppings falling on court halts match between HS Prannoy and Loh Kean Yew twice

Bird droppings falling on court halts match between HS Prannoy and Loh Kean Yew twice

Published by Webster

The match between HS Prannoy and Loh Kean Yew was paused twice, first towards the end of the opening game and then at the start of the third game, due to bird droppings falling from the top of the stadium ceiling. While it wasn’t clear during the match why the chair umpire had his arm up to call for the tournament referee and another official came on court to wipe, the Indian later said in the mixed zone, ‘it was bird shit that kind of halted the game.’ It happened on Court 1 at the venue, which is the main television court. The commentators weren’t sure on air either about what was causing the stoppages. In the first game, when Prannoy was leading 16-14, the game was halted as the umpire called the tournament official to remove something from the court. An official then cleaned the spot with tissues and wipes. The same incident happened in the third game when Prannoy was leading 1-0. In a close battle against the former world champion, Prannoy eventually …

Kumamoto Japan Masters: Lakshya Sen powers past former world champion Loh Kean Yew in straight games to reach semis | Badminton News

Kumamoto Japan Masters: Lakshya Sen powers past former world champion Loh Kean Yew in straight games to reach semis | Badminton News

Published by Webster

During Loh Kean Yew’s consistently breathtaking performances in Huelva at the 2021 World Championships, former Denmark player and recently-appointed coach HK Vittinghus remarked on Twitter (now X): “In badminton we now have three levels of how fast you can be: Fast, (Anthony) Ginting fast, Loh Kean Yew fast!” That’s how the Singaporean was moving on court that week in Spain when he went on to famously win the gold medal, his best ever performance at the event. That week, Lakshya too had a memorable run, registering his best run at the Worlds to date, winning bronze. The Indian may have slipped down the world rankings, but when he is at his best, he is no slouch on the badminton court either. Like Loh, Lakshya also thrives on remarkable retrieval skills, showcasing the explosive speed needed to recover after defending. Both are brilliant at the net and possess a potent jump smash. Their games match up rather evenly, and while both have had less-than-ideal international scenes, at time during the second game of their quarterfinal clash …

Ayush Shetty stuns WR12 Loh Kean Yew in opener

Ayush Shetty stuns WR12 Loh Kean Yew in opener

Published by Webster

The Orleans Masters 2025 badminton tournament witnessed round one action at the Palais des Sports in Orléans, France on Wednesday. With a host of Indians in the fray across the singles and doubles, action on all the three courts were of interest. All eyes were on HS Prannoy as he took to court 2 in his first-round fixture against Wang TW of Chinese Taipei. The Indian looked confident and was on course to close the match out in straight games. But a setback in the second game meant that he needed to go the distance. Prannoy eventually prevailed 21-11, 20-22 and 21-9. However, the biggest result of India on the opening day came on court one where Ayush Shetty stunned Indonesia’s Loh Kean Yew in straight games. Yew, who boasts of a world rank of 12 and was seeded 3 here, had no answers as the Indian romped home 21-17, 21-9. 🚨Upset alert🚨 Young Indian shuttler Ayush Shetty has defeated former world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in the first round of the 2025 …

With sharper net play, Lakshya Sen beats Loh Kean Yew to enter semifinals of the French Open | Badminton News

Published by Webster

No one in Michael Jackson’s troupe ever thought of practical problems like slipping when there’s blood on the dance-floor. But Lakshya Sen who had a nasty gnash on his right hand finger which refused to stop dripping, and his opponent Loh Kean Yew, two of the bounciest beings on a badminton court, had to mind the droplets before resuming their subsequent dancing on the French Open court. In the end, Sen made the Paris semifinals defeating Loh 19-21, 21-15, 21-13, making him sweat at the net, at which the Singaporean has never been known to be very adept. The Indian enters every tour event like it’s a personal knockout round for him — a race to Olympics, given his ranking currently is out of Top 16. He needs deep runs in big tournaments, and is luckily good at shrugging off reputations of opponents. All England defending champion Li Shifeng — Check. 2021 World Champion Loh Kean Yew — Check. Tamed in three. Reputations and repertoire don’t scare Sen, but that Olympic qualification needs to be …