KUALA LUMPUR: Justin Hoh's campaign at the Hong Kong Open ended prematurely, but he can hold his head high.
The 20-year-old came close to winning his maiden Super 500 match, narrowly losing 21-7, 21-23, 21-18 to world No. 26 Rasmus Gemke at Hong Kong Coliseum on Wednesday.
Justin fought valiantly in the second game, saving three match points at 20-18 and 21-20 to force a decider.
In the third game, Justin once again came from behind, overturning a 6-0 deficit to lead 14-11 and 18-16.
However, Gemke, this year's German Open runner-up, had the last laugh, winning the next five rallies to seal the victory.
Justin failed to avenge his earlier defeat to Gemke during the group stage of the Thomas Cup.
That clash also went down to the wire, with Gemke prevailing 21-13, 19-21, 21-13, resulting in Denmark beating Malaysia 3-2.
Overall, Justin has reason to be upbeat about his recent run on the World Tour, which included a career-best quarter-final outing at the Taiwan Open last week.
This performance propelled Justin from No. 68 to No. 57 in the world rankings this week.
With his improved ranking, Justin will now have opportunities to compete against elite opponents on the World Tour and build on the experience.
Meanwhile, compatriot Cheam June Wei was no match for Frenchman Christo Popov, losing 21-19, 21-10.
In women's singles, Goh Jin Wei's week also ended early when she was beaten by South Korea's Kim Ga Eun 21-7, 24-22.
This match echoed their epic duel at the Paris Olympics, where Ga Eun prevailed 21-17, 20-22, 23-21, despite Jin Wei having two match points.
That victory secured Ga Eun's progress to the knockout stage by winning Group H.