PETALING JAYA: Professional shuttler Lee Zii Jia (pic) aims to brush up on his game quickly with less than 50 days left before the Paris Olympic Games starts on July 26.
The world No. 7 could not produce quality in his attacking shots and lost 16-21, 17-21 to Thailand’s world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the quarter-finals of the Indonesian Open at the Istora Senayan yesterday.
Zii Jia promises to work on his weaknesses before Paris.
“I need a lot more confidence to execute my game plan. He (Kunlavut) played really well today and it was hard for me to get past him,” said Zii Jia.
“He was able to return most of my attacking shots, I need to go back and work harder on this.
The last time both players met was at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year, where Zii Jia won the match.
Zii Jia will head to the Australian Open next week and opens his campaign against Finland’s Kalle Koljonen.
He needs a good result to maintain his ranking within the top eight, which will see him gain a favourable seeding in Paris.
“The result here does give me some confidence because it has been a good run since the Thailand Open (champion) and Malaysian Masters (runners-up).
“I know I have done well to reach the quarter-finals but personally, I’m not satisfied,” he said.
Meanwhile, Leong Jun Hao’s losing streak continued against China’s Li Shifeng after he bowed out 11-21, 12-21 in a one-sided quarter-final match. He had lost to the world No. 4 twice before this year.
“I tried different methods to try and overpower him, but in the end he was the better player,” said Jun Hao.
“He’s a strong player overall, but maybe the next time we play again I will be more prepared to take him on.
“Reaching a Super 1000 quarter-final is a positive step for me, it shows that I have what it takes to defeat higher ranked players,” added the 24-year-old Jun Hao, who had beaten world No. 3 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia and world No. 11 Chou Tien-chen of Taiwan en route to the last eight.
Jun Hao will now take a well-deserved break before his next tournament at the Japan Open in August.
