18-year-old Hu Zhean of China beat former world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in straight games at the inaugural King Cup in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, on Friday.

Backed by Chinese badminton great Lin Dan, the event features only men's singles matches in its first edition. The eight players competing include former world champions Loh and Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand, along with Denmark's World No. 2 Anders Antonsen.

Hu beat Loh 21-15, 21-15 to set up a semifinal clash with India's Lakshya Sen.

"I faced a very strong opponent at the start of this event, and I think we both performed well, but I was more decisive on some key points. This is my first time to compete against top players, so it was very difficult to win the match, and I am very excited," said Hu.

In other action, France's Alex Lanier beat China's Wang Zijun to advance to semifinals. Wang, who is also 18, took his first game against Lanier 21-15. But the 19-year-old Frenchman battled back to grab the second and third frames for a 2-1 come-from-behind victory, setting up a last-four showdown with Antonsen.