Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia booked his place in the Taipei Open last 16 after fighting back to defeat Taiwan’s Liao Jhuo Fu in a hard-fought first-round match on Wednesday.
The men’s singles shuttler, who reached the semi-finals of the Canadian Open earlier this month, overcame the home favourite 22-24, 21-12, 21-15 in a match that lasted 63 minutes.
The victory marks another encouraging performance for Zii Jia, whose return to competition over the past seven months has been hampered by a series of early-round exits.
Despite his inconsistent results, the former All England champion looked composed and in control throughout the match, offering further signs that he is rediscovering his best form.
Zii Jia will face a much tougher test in the second round, where he is set to take on either Taiwan’s All England champion Lee Chun Yi or Indonesia’s Anthony Sinisuka Ginting.
Elsewhere, Malaysia’s newly formed men’s doubles pair Tee Kai Wun-Yap Roy King were knocked out after losing 21-18, 19-21, 17-21 to South Korea’s Na Sung Seung-Wang Chan in a 56-minute battle.
In the mixed doubles event, Lee Yi Bo-Lim Chiew Sien were eliminated after a straight-games defeat to Taiwan’s Wu Guan Xun-Lee Chia Hsin, losing 18-21, 17-21.
Malaysia’s sole women’s singles representative Goh Jin Wei also exited the tournament after falling 17-21, 20-22 to Canada’s Zhang Wen Yu, despite mounting a spirited fightback in the second game.
