Lesson Well Learnt

Lesson Well Learnt - It hasn’t been the best of times for women’s singles shuttler Goh Jin Wei (pic) since she returned from an ankle injury earlier this month.

She was beaten in straight games by China’s Chen Yufei in the second round of the Malaysian Open and then lost 16-21, 21-19, 13-21 to South Korea’s Sung Ji-hyun in the first round of the Singapore Open.

But the 17-year-old, who injured her ankle in January, believes that both the defeats will stand her in good stead at the Asian Badminton Championships (ABC) in Wuhan.

And the world No. 31, who meets world No. 5 and second seed Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in the first round of the tournament proper today, is ready to step up her game.

“I’ve had a week since the Singapore meet to prepare for the ABC ... I’m in good shape now,” said the 2015 world junior champion.

“Although I lost in the first round in Singapore, it was a very close match ... and I gained some confidence from it.

“If I meet Ji-hyun again, I’ll definitely give her a run for her money. Now, I’m just focused on Yamaguchi. It’s rare to meet a player of her calibre ... I’ll definitely give her a fight.”

The other Malaysian women’s singles shuttler in the main draw is world No. 40 Soniia Cheah.

The 23-year-old should get past Iranian qualifier Soraya Aghaei­ha­jiagha and meet sixth seed Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand in the second round.

World No. 47 Lee Ying Ying failed to join the pair in the main draw after being eliminated in the qualifying rounds yesterday.

The world No. 47 defeated Jordan’s Domou Amro 21-6, 21-8 in Group B but suffered a costly 19-21, 13-21 loss to world No. 56 Lee Jang-mi of South Korea.

Only the group winners progress into the main draw.

In men’s singles, world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei begins his quest for a third ABC title with a first-round clash against Japan’s Kazu­masa Sakai today.

Other Malaysians in the fray are independent shuttlers Zul­fadli Zulkiffli and Chong Wei Feng.

Three men’s doubles pairs – Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong, Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi and Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani – will also see action today.

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Airbnb Has A New Name In China And It’s Aww, So Sweet

Airbnb Has A New Name In China And It’s Aww, So Sweet - Airbnb, the home rentals website, said it would double its investment in China, triple its workforce there and change its name to “Aibiying” in Chinese.

The name translates to “Welcome each other with love”. Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said it reflected the company’s commitment to succeeding in the country.

“There’s a whole new generation of Chinese travellers who want to see the world in a different way,” Chesky said at a launch event in Shanghai.

“We hope that Aibiying… strikes a chord with them,” he said, according to a company statement.

The statement did not provide figures on the increased investment. The company recently ended a successful US$1bil (RM4.4bil) fundraising drive.

Airbnb has 60 employees in China and wants a total of 180 by the end of the year, a spokesperson said.

There have been 5.3 million guest check-ins by Chinese travellers at Airbnb listings around the world. Outbound travel from China grew by 142% in 2016 alone, the company said.

Domestically, Airbnb aims to grow from its approximately 80,000 existing listings in China since it became available at the end of 2014.

Aibiying opens its doors

Airbnb competes in the world’s second largest economy with domestic home rental websites Tujia.com and Xiaozhu.com.

Airbnb is not the first US-based techno­logy firm to make a big push into the Chinese market but not all have found success.

US car-hailing giant Uber agreed last August to tie up with China’s Didi Chuxing, ending a ferocious battle between the two for market share.

The agreement left Didi Chuxing with unquestioned control of the ride-sharing sector.

Airbnb, founded in 2008, allows homeowners to rent out their properties by marketing them online for a fee.

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