KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s professional men’s singles ace Lee Zii Jia is at risk of missing out on a spot in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Finals 2024 after losing in the first round of the 2024 China Masters. In the first round held at the Shenzhen Gymnasium today, Zii Jia, who was placed as the seventh seed in the tournament, was defeated by India’s top singles ace Lakshya Sen 14-21, 21-13, 13-21 in 57 minutes.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the defeat slightly jeopardized the chances of the Alor Setar, Kedah-born player who is currently ranked sixth with 74,940 points in the final eight of the World Tour Finals, which will take place in Hangzhou, China next month. “Today he (Lakshya) performed very well, especially in terms of defensive style. This is the last chance for me to qualify and I know I will have to rely on the outcome of some of the other players. If you ask me personally, I am in a very good position to qualify and pray that I will qualify for the World Tour Finals,” he sa
id in a BWF statement.
Zii Jia will now have to depend on the fate of other players at the China Masters tournament, including Japan’s Koki Watanabe (71,130), who is currently ranked seventh in the World Tour Finals. China’s Li Shi Feng, who was also stranded in the first round, is currently ranked eighth (70,440), while Taiwan’s Lin Chun Yi is ranked ninth (68,500).
Meanwhile, national mixed doubles pair Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin advanced to the second round after defeating Taiwan’s Liu Kuang Heng-Jheng Yu Chieh 21-17, 21-12 and will meet China’s Jiang Zhen Bang-Wei Ya Xin. Another national mixed doubles pair, Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien, followed in the footsteps after defeating Koceila Mammeri-Tanina Violette Mammeri 21-15, 21-13 and are scheduled to meet Hong Kong’s Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet.