KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s leading men’s singles shuttler, Lee Zii Jia, faced an unexpected exit from the Super 750 French Open, bowing out in the first round with a candid acknowledgement that he simply was not in his element.
The world’s 10th-ranked independent player suffered a setback against Denmark’s Magnus Johannesen, ranked 30th, in a match lasting 41 minutes, with scores of 15-21, 19-21.
“I believe Magnus delivered an impressive performance today. Maybe I wasn’t really into the game.
“As you can see, I was not very patient, and I think the defensive plays from Magnus made me lose confidence.
“To be honest, throughout the match, you can see I had no control of the game, especially in the last two points where I got the chance to make a difference… but no,” confessed the former Asian Champion in a post-match interview with BWF.
The match early this morning at Arena Porte de la Chapelle in Paris was their second meeting and Zii Jia did not seem too confident in his moves on the court compared to their previous encounter at the German Open last year, where he comfortably won 21-11, 21-5.
“Over the past two years, you can see he has gotten quite good results for himself and caused a few upsets against some of the top players. I think he’s been progressing well,” he added.
Unfortunately, it was not just Zii Jia facing disappointment.
Other Malaysian shuttlers also faltered in the first round, including men’s doubles pairs Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi and Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani, as well as mixed doubles pairs Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai and Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing.
Women’s singles player Goh Jin Wei and women’s doubles duo Vivian Hoo-Lim Chiew Sien and Pearly Tan-M Thinah also faced defeats in their respective matches. – March 7, 2024