Zii Jia smashes his way to quarter-finals in Indonesian Open

Lee Zii Jia

PETALING JAYA: Men singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia battled his way to reach the quarter-finals of the Indonesian Open after taking down China’s Weng Hongyang.

The world No. 7 Zii Jia bounced back after opening game heartbreak to knock out the world No. 19 Hongyang 20-22, 21-9, 21-16 in an hour and 11 minutes match at the Istora Senayan Stadium in Jakarta on Thursday.

With the win, Zia Jia's head-to-head record with Hongyang stands at 3-3.

The match wasn’t a walk in the park for Zii Jia as Hongyang came out in full force in the first game as the lead kept changing hands until the Chinese player edged out in the end.

Zii Jia then mounted a stellar comeback in the second for a superb win.

Although Hongyang tried his best to reclaim the final game, Zii Jia stood solid to win from the seventh point onwards.

Zii Jia will face Thailand’s world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the quarter-finals on Friday (June 7).

The 26-year-old admitted that the win came as a surprise as the first game loss had hampered his confidence.

"Even though I was leading 20-18, I couldn’t close out the first game, which dropped my confidence heading into the second," said Zii Jia.

"I couldn’t focus well at the start of the second game but I’m glad that I solved the problem."

Zii Jia added that he has been satisfied with his performances in recent tournaments, having won the Thailand Open last month, followed by a runners up finish at the Malaysian Masters.

However, he did pull out of the Singapore Open last week, giving a walkover to Indonesia’s Anthony Ginting in the opening round.

"So far I am satisfied with with how I’ve been doing in the past tournaments and I hope to keep this momentum going," he added.