Jayce
On September 18, in the first round of the 2024 China Badminton Open, 4th seed Li Shifeng continued his poor form, losing 0-2 (17-21, 18-21) to Chou Tien Chen, suffering another early exit.
In the BWF men’s singles rankings, Li Shifeng is ranked 4th, while veteran Chou Tien Chen is 9th. In this new Los Angeles Olympic cycle, Li Shifeng’s first home tournament ended in a first-round exit, undoubtedly leaving him disappointed.
In the first game, the two were tied at 15-15 after a close start, but Li Shifeng made several unforced errors, allowing Chou to pull ahead 18-15. At this point, Li’s nerves got the better of him, leading to consecutive mistakes, and he lost the game 17-21.
In the second game, Chou came out strong, leading 9-1 and 12-2. Li Shifeng fought back to 15-15 and later to 18-18, but unfortunately, Chou was more confident in the critical points, and Li eventually lost the match.
Although the two games were close, Li Shifeng admitted afterward that Chou’s aggressive style put him on the defensive. He had chances to come back after 11 points but made too many mistakes during key moments, affecting his mentality. Li Shifeng has been struggling with poor results for more than half a year and hopes to regain his confidence in this new Olympic cycle.
