JOHOR'S POWERPACK PLAYERS HIT PURPLE PATCH AT THE 2023 JOHOR CLOSED BADMINTON CHAMPIONSHIP

PONTIAN (6 January): The second day of the 2023 Johor Closed Badminton Championship produced some exhilarating action at DBC Sport Arena, as players continued to light up the court with notable victories.

The spotlight was stolen by top seed Ariffin Nazri Mohd Zakaria, who staged a stunning comeback to overcome his rival Wee Yee Hern 21-17, 21-17 in a fiery U-21 men's singles round of 32 match.

It was a touch-and-go opening game, with Ariffin keeping his composure to race to an 8-2 lead in the first five minutes. Yee Hern then bounced back and kept Ariffin on his toes by leading 16-9.

However, the talented shuttler was no match for Ariffin's aggressive style of play, and Ariffin took the first game 21-17. Ariffin then settled his nerves in the second game and sailed into the next round with another 21-17 win.

Ariffin was delighted with his performance and thanked the Johor Badminton Association (Johor BA) for organising the tournament. He said, "I'm happy with my performance today; however, I still believe I need to improve on a few tactical aspects of my game in order to prevail in this tournament. I can't wait to play in the round of 16, and I believe my state teammate Azuan Amirul Imran will be my toughest challenger in this tournament."

Ariffin, who recently reached the round of 64 in the U-19 men's singles at the BWF World Junior Championships 2022 in Spain, added, "I would like to thank the Johor BA for organising this tournament, as it gives players like me an opportunity to play against the top talents in the state."

Meanwhile, Ariffin's main rival, Azuan Amirul Imran, cruised into the round of 16 of the U-21 men's singles after his opponent, Jason Heng, gave a walkover.

In the Under-14 boys' doubles, Lee Kah Ying-Adam Aiman secured a notable 21-13, 21-13 victory against Toong Renkai-Vishal Uthayasangar, while defending U-16 girls' singles champion Dania Sofea continues her title defence in the round of 16 against Wong Yuan Xuan at 8.15pm tonight.

The ongoing 11th edition of the Johor Closed Badminton Championship features more than 600 players competing in five age categories: Under-21, Under-16, Under-14, Under-12 and Under-10.

The competition runs from 5 to 8 January at DBC Sport Arena, Pontian, Johor.