It was a tough day for Europe’s remaining doubles participants at the BWF World Championships in Nanjing, China as all three remaining pairs fell at the quarter-finals stage.

The most notable of these came from Denmark’s Mads Conrad-Petersen and Mads Pieler Kolding who could not replicate their second set comeback in the decider as they fell 21-13, 14-21, 21-18 to Chinese second seeds Liu Cheng and Zhang Nan.

In the opening set, the Dane’s gave themselves a tricky start by being 4-0 down already. But after quickly getting back into the match and momentarily taking a 9-8 lead, Liu and Zhang produced a strong end to the first set by winning the last six points.

The second set was almost the exact opposite, as Conrad-Petersen and Kolding came out strong and gradually increased their lead to take them into the decider with all the momentum.

The third and deciding set was as tense and thrilling as you could expect. With both pairs exchanging leads, it was tough to see who would take control. In the end, Liu and Zhang produced successive points at the right time to come out winners in what was a well fought contest.

See also: Danish Doubles Delight

-         Lost for words. Gave it everything and lost it in the end. So sad and disappointed at the moment. I guess that’s sport, says Conrad-Petersen on his Instagram page.

Europe’s mixed doubles hopes dashed thanks to Chinese pairs

Earlier in the day, there was further misery for Denmark, as Mathias Christiansen and Christinna Pedersen fell just short in their straight sets defeat to Chinese fifth seed Zhang Nan and Li Yinhui 21-15, 22-20.

After pulling away early in the opening set, their Chinese regrouped to wipe out the deficit and take a lead of their own which included winning the last four points.

The second set was a much tighter affair. But as Christiansen and Pedersen pulled away to a 17-14 lead, it looked as if a third set would decide it. Sadly for them, Zhang and Li recovered well and held their never when it mattered to snatch the second set away from them.

-         No World Championship medal this time. Disappointed, but also happy with our level this week. Now it’s time for some days off, before heading back to Denmark on Monday. We will be back! Thank you for all the support, says Christiansen on his Instagram page.

Shortly after that, England’s Chris and Gabrielle Adcock could not match their Commonwealth Games and European Championships victories as they were defeated 21-13, 21-18 to China’s second seeded pair Wang Yilyu and Huang Dongping.

A slow start in the opening few points saw the Adcock’s already on the back-foot and chasing a lead they would eventually never catch.

The second set saw the English pair come out fighting despite falling 7-4 down at one point. With them creating a 15-12 lead, the opportunities were there. But sadly for them, their Chinese opponents fought back well and turned it around in spectacular fashion.

See also: Adcock’s off to World’s quarter final

-         Not good enough from us today unfortunately. Having one good patch isn’t going to win world medals. It’s easy to focus on the negatives right now but in time I’m sure me & Chris will look at the many positives we have to take away, not just from this tournament but the past 6 weeks. A massive thanks for the support throughout. We are having a short break now to mentally and physically refresh, ready for the next stint, says Gabrielle Adcock on her Instagram page.

For a full list of the draws and results, click here.