Tokyo:South Korea lost to Australia 7-8 in its first game of a regional baseball tournament in Tokyo on Thursday as its comeback effort went for naught. The match marked the opening of the Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC) at Tokyo Dome.

According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korea rallied from a 4-0 deficit to take a 6-4 lead, only to give up four runs over the final two innings. This tournament is the third edition, featuring host country Japan and Taiwan. Japan won the first two editions, with South Korea finishing as the runner-up on both occasions.

The APBC is designed for players aged 24 years and younger or those with no more than three years of professional experience, allowing each team to include up to three players aged 24 to 29. South Korea, predominantly composed of young Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) stars, is scheduled to face Japan at 7 p.m. Friday and Taiwan at 7 p.m. Saturday. Following round-robin play, the two lowest-ranking teams will compete in the third-place game at 11 a.m. Sunday, with the top two nations battling in the final at 7 p.m. Sunday.

Australia took an early lead in the first inning with Blake Cavill's three-run home run. Chris Burke extended the lead to 4-0 with an RBI single. South Korea responded in the sixth inning, with Kim Ju-won's two-run homer and Kim Whee-jip’s bases-clearing double turning the game around to a 5-4 lead. Park Jae-hyun's RBI single furthered the lead to 6-4.

However, Australia tied the game in the eighth inning with Clayton Campbell's two-run homer. They regained the lead in the ninth inning, with hits from Alex Hall, Chris Burke, and Max Durrington, making it 8-6. South Korea's efforts in the bottom of the ninth fell short despite Kim Do-yeong's sacrifice fly, as Ahn Hyun-min's pop out ended the game with Australia securing the victory.