Nepal number one Ratnajit Tamang and teen prodigy Prince Dahal lost their men’s singles opening match of the Nepal International Challenge badminton championships in straight sets in Tripureshwor on Wednesday.

Unseeded at the tournament, Tamang suffered a 21-9, 21-13 defeat against eighth seed Adulrach Namkul of Thailand while the 16-year-old Dahal lost 21-17, 21-12 against second seed Sergey Sirant of Russia. Earlier this year Dahal had performed exceptionally well at Dubai International Series to win the U-17 single’s gold medal.

Bikash Shrestha and Praful Maharjan also failed to shine for Nepal. Shrestha lost 21-13, 21-14 against Wang Yuehang of England while Maharjan suffered a 21-14, 21-10 defeat against Siddharath Thakur of India. Jivan Acharya lost 21-12, 21-13 against seventh seed Siril Verma of India while Sunil Joshi was beaten 22-20, 21-11 by Keith Mark Edison of Australia.

The only positives for Nepal came from Dipesh Dhami and Bishnu Katuwal as they both marked a winning start at the tournament. Dhami brushed aside Deepak Sharma of India 21-10, 21-16 while Katwal got the better of Nidup Dorji of Bhutan 21-9, 21-4.

Nepal’s performance in the women’s category could have been better as well. Shuttlers who have been preparing for the upcoming 13th South Asian Games to be hosted by Nepal from December 1 to 10 in Kathmandu and Pokhara failed to produce wins against visitors.

In the women’s singles, Anu Maya Rai lost 21-4, 21-4 against Japan’s Riko Gunji while Amita Giri suffered a 21-12, 21-10 defeat against eighth seed Tanvi Lad of India.

The tournament is the first International Challenge, the sixth tire event recognised by international badminton governing body, being organised by the Nepal Badminton Association.