Favourite, the mix delivers against the locals

The start of the match was difficult for the French pair. Léa PALERMO and Julien MAIO got in each other's way and struggled to defend against their opponents' attacks. However, they took advantage of a few hesitations from the Chinese pair JIANG Zhen Bang/WEI Ya Xin to stay close on the scoreboard. Unfortunately, this only lasted a short while, as once the Chinese pair found their feet on the court, nothing could stop them. Leading at the break (11-6), the World Championship runners-up cruised to win the first set 21-10.  

Far from being discouraged, the French pair picked up their rackets again to try and achieve the feat that the large crowd at the Glaz Arena had been waiting for. Playing more aggressively, the French managed to take a narrow one-point lead at the break (11-10). Although the spectators cheered loudly to encourage the French pair, it was unfortunately not enough. Julien tried to force the Chinese players into making mistakes, and Léa was aggressive at the net, but they were caught off guard by their opponents' shots. At 13/13, the world number ones decided to end the match and tightened the screws. The Chinese concealed their shots very well and the French could only watch as the shuttlecocks fell to the ground, failing to score a single point. Despite a good fight, the journey ends there for the MAIO/PALERMO mixed doubles pair, who lose 10-21, 13-21.