But the duo squandered a lot of opportunities. They were leading 20-16 in the second game, but failed to clinch any of the four game points.

'It was not our day,' Rupesh said. 'We did not get a start. The feeling was not there and also there was lot of drift. We did not get used to the conditions.'

'We almost pulled it off, but for some silly errors. We were leading in the second game and we should have held on to the advantage,' he said.

'After winning the New Zealand Grand Prix, we were high on confidence. We beat a Japanese pair in the final and today our opponents were also of the same level.'

Rupesh also said that he faced problems with the drift due to the air-conditioning.

During the Indian Open, also held at the same venue, players had complained about similar problems.

'I was not able to judge the momentum of the shuttle. It was very difficult out there,' said Rupesh.

Gade also said there was little bit of drift, but said it was typical of an Asian venue. Dutchman Palyama, 30, said that he kept his nerves during crucial moments of the game to stun Bao.

'This is an important victory in my career. I beat Bao four years back at the Korean Open. I have also lost to him twice. He is a good player and won the Singapore Open. I kept my nerves when I was leading. Suddenly I thought that I can win this game and then I stayed calm and did not think of the outcome,' said Palyama, a regular at the World Championships since 1997.

Mutatkar, who had been suffering from a knee injury for a long time, said she was just not able to mentally concentrate.

'I have been out of the circuit for a long time. But no complaints because there was no problem with my knee. I have fully recovered. The preparation was also fine. Maybe mentally I was not there because I am short of match practice. There were no national tournaments where I could have competed.'