JAKARTA - Men's singles badminton player Jonatan Christie immediately suffered a defeat in the first round of the 2026 Japan Open. His journey in the tournament was followed by Panitchapon Teeraratsakul from Thailand.
Jonatan, who is the fourth seed in the BWF Super 750 event, admitted Teeraratsakul's superiority in the two straight games 16-21 and 14-21 at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium on Tuesday, July 14, 2026.
The 2018 Asian Games gold medallist said that the change in the shuttlecock's character was faster than when they took the field test, making them have to adapt again and end in defeat.
"So, earlier it actually changed a little bit the way it played, the pattern of the strategy, but it was still not able to overcome the change in the way it played," said Jonatan in an official statement received by the media.
Jonatan actually started the first game well so that he managed to lead 5-0 and maintain it to 7-4. However, seven points against after that changed the course of the game.
After the break, Jonatan managed to secure three consecutive points to reduce the distance with the opponent. However, Teeraratsakul managed to maintain the advantage he had to secure the game.
In the second game, Jonatan had more difficulty in containing his opponent's game after he was immediately behind 0-4 at the start of the game. His closest distance with Teeraratsakul in this game was at 2-4.
"I can say that I was late to react and adapt, especially in the second game. I took a few points in a row, but the distance was too far apart, it was quite difficult to catch up. Today Panitchapon also played more aggressively," said Jonatan.
This result was Teeraratsakul's revenge on Jonatan and equaled their meeting record to 1-1. Previously in their first clash in the 2026 Indonesia Open semifinals, he lost after fighting three games.
Indonesia's men's singles total lowered three representatives in Japan. Jonatan's defeat left the sector hoping for the youth badminton players Alwi Farhan and Mohammad Zaki Ubaidillah.
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