UAE's Bharath Latheesh sets up clash with world number six Kodai Naraoka

Bharath Latheesh grew up idolising Lee Chong Wei, the legendary Malaysian player. While the 15-year-old Latheesh has a long way to go before he could hope of joining the world's best in badminton, the UAE youngster nevertheless gave a glimpse into the future on Tuesday.

Latheesh recorded two impressive wins on the opening day of the KhiladiX.com Dubai 2023 Badminton Asia Championships at the Rashid bin Hamdan Hall in Al Nasr Club.

The rising star of the UAE badminton, who came into the Asian championships on the back of title wins in the junior categories at the Uganda Open and Spanish Open, beat Yousif Al Humairi of Iraq 21-9, 21-8 before defeating Salar Bayat of Iran 21-16, 21-13 to enter the main draw of the prestigious badminton championship.

"It's a great feeling to win these matches at the Asia Championships. I was expecting to play well. But I did not expect to win the matches comfortably. So I am happy obviously how I won today," Latheesh told reporters after his victories in the qualifying round.

With the comprehensive wins on Tuesday, Latheesh set up a clash with world number six Kodai Naraoka of Japan.

"Now I am excited to play my next match tomorrow. As I said, this is an amazing opportunity against the best players in the world. My target is to give my best tomorrow,” Latheesh said.

Meanwhile, reigning world champion Akane Yamaguchi of Japan and Indian star PV Sindhu, the 2019 world champion and two-time Olympic medallist, will also open their campaigns on Wednesday.