- Two-time Olympic champion is no match for Japan's top seed Kento Momota in front of home fans at China Open
- Lin's world ranking drops to 19th, far behind countrymen and Olympic rivals Chen Long and Shi Yuqi
Two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan insisted he would continue to pursue 2020 Olympic qualification despite another dismal performance, this time in front of the home crowds.
Lin was no match for Japan's Kento Momota, the world No 1 and hot favourite for next year's Tokyo Olympics gold, with the home favourite crashing out in the opening round with a 2-0 (21-14, 21-14) defeat on Tuesday. The China Open in Changzhou is a Super 1000 tournament, which is the highest level on the world tour,
At last month's World Championships in Basel, Lin, who turns 36 next month, suffered his earliest exit in 12 appearances when he was beaten by little-known HS Prannoy, of India, in the second round.
His world ranking has also dropped to 19th, far behind his countrymen Shi Yuqi and Chen Long, who are third and fifth respectively. A country can send a maximum two players in the men's singles to the 2020 Games provided they are both in the top 16 when the qualification process ends in April.
Despite facing a seemingly unreachable goal, Lin, who won back-to-back gold medals at the 2008 and 2012 Games, has no plans to stop chasing a record fifth Olympic appearance in Tokyo.
Lin made his Olympic debut at the 2004 Athens Games and finished fourth in the Rio Olympics after losing to Viktor Axelsen, of Denmark, in the bronze medal play-off.
The result (against Momota) could be different if I did better in the details. I was not as patient as him. I had prepared a lot but I did not perform that wellLin Dan
"The rule is simple: the one who gets more points, gets the ticket," said Lin after his defeat to the No 1 seed. "We cannot just choose which event you want to play or only start in some small tournaments. This is not the only way we should do it.
"We have to put all the difficulties in front of us and choose to overcome them. Then we can improve form and perform better.
The result (against Momota) could be different if I did better in the details. I was not as patient as him. I had prepared a lot but I did not perform that well."
Lin should gain some comfort from his major rival in the China team, Shi, who also crashed out of the first round, losing by a big margin to compatriot Lu Gangzu 21-5, 21-9. But reports from the mainland reports say Shi is yet to recover from his ankle problem sustained in the Indonesia Open two months ago.
Chen Long, meanwhile, survived after a tough time against Malaysia's Lee Zii Jia, eventually winning 21-16, 12-21, 23-21) in the opening round. Hong Kong's Angus Ng Ka-long also went through after a narrow win 9-21, 21-18, 21-19 over mainlander Zhao Junpeng.
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