Ajay Jayaram dream run comes to halt, loses to World no. 1 Chen in finals

AJAY JAYARAM has been in fantastic form at the Korea Open, making his maiden Superseries final appearance in Seoul. But the Indian shuttler's challenge fell flat in front of World No.1 Chen Long of China, losing in straight games on Sunday.

The reigning double World Champion took just 39 minutes to beat Jayaram 21-14, 21-13 in the men's singles summit clash to be crowned the champion at the S.K. Handball Stadium. This was Chen's second win over the World No.32 Indian in as many meetings.

"I knew it was going to be hard going into the finals. I started well by mixing my attack from the back and the net. But he got back more shuttles than I expected. So I found it difficult to sustain the pressure," Jayaram told IANS from the South Korean capital.

"I did have a couple of chances which I felt I couldn't capitalise on. All credit to Chen Long. He played a percentage game and didn't falter much. I am definitely a little disappointed that I couldn't go all the way."

Mumbai's Jayaram showed some energy with a couple of cross court smashes at the start of the contest. But from 9-9, the top seed showed that he was the boss, slowly extending his lead and winning 12 of the next 17 points to seal the game in his favour.

The second game was completely dominated by the Chinese, racing away to a 19-9 lead. It was only a matter of time before he pocketed his fifth Superseries title of the year.

"It has still been a wonderful week for me. Got some good wins against top players and this is a much needed confidence boost for me. I will be competing next in the European circuit in October," added Jayaram.

"I hope to get a few good weeks of training and do well there. I do have a few areas I need to further improve. Hope to come back stronger."