KUALA LUMPUR – Independent men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia clawed back to win his first-round match at the Denmark Open earlier today after losing the first set to Julien Carraggi of Belgium.
Zii Jia lost the first set, 19-21, to the world number 43 at the Jyske Bank Arena in Odense.
However, the national singles player quickly rebounded in the second set, which he won 21-15, before winning the third set 21-10 to advance to the second round.
Zii Jia will face an uphill task later today as he will meet home favourite and world number one player Viktor Axelsen in the second round.
It was a walk in the park for Axelsen when he defeated compatriot Magnus Johannesen 21-7, 21-9 in his first-round match.
Earlier, in the women’s doubles, national pair Anna Cheong-Teoh Mei Xing were defeated 21-14, 21-18 by world number five pair Zhang Shu Xian-Zheng Yu from China.
The Chinese pair will take on rivals Lee Chia Hsin and Teng Chun Hsun of Chinese Taipei in the next round. – October 19, 2023