A major struggle: Lee Zii Jia in action during the match against Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn. Zii Jia will face India’s Lakshya Sen (inset) in the bronze medal playoff. — Reuters/AP
MALAYSIA’S Lee Zii Jia desperately wants to prove a point. India’s Lakshya Sen is a wounded tiger waiting to strike back.
And the two shuttlers will clash today in a mouthwatering showdown in the bronze medal playoff of the men’s singles at the Paris Olympics.
It could well be a final, with both out to salvage a medal in the Olympics after losing in the semi-finals.
Zii Jia fell 14-21, 15-21 to Thailand’s reigning world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn while Lakshya went down 20-22, 14-21 to Denmark’s defending gold medallist at Adidas Arena in Port de la Chapelle yesterday.
Zii Jia was hoping to become only the second Malaysian to reach an Olympic final after Lee Chong Wei but found the Thai a tough nut to crack, losing out in 50 minutes.
The independent player is now determined to make amends by winning the bronze.
“Kunlavut played a very good match today (yesterday). I can feel that in terms of confidence and form, he is at the top level,” Zii Jia told the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
“I just tried everything to get points but it didn’t work very well. I am quite disappointed that I lost the chance to be in the final.
“Still, tomorrow (today) is a final game for me for the bronze medal, so I’ve no time to think about this defeat. I have to keep focusing.”
Based on head-to-head records, Lakshya holds the advantage having beaten Zii Jia in four of their past five meetings. The 26-year-old Malaysian has never beaten the Indian in an individual competition and his sole victory came in the 2022 Thomas Cup Finals.
Zii Jia, though, can take heart from the fact that lost very narrowly twice to Lakshya in the 2022 All-England (13-21, 21-12, 19-21) and this year’s tournament in March (22-20, 16-21, 19-21).
If Zii Jia manages to pull off a win this time, he will become the third Malaysian singles player to win a medal in the Olympics after 1996 Atlanta Games bronze medallist Datuk Rashid Sidek and Chong Wei, who captured three silvers in Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2012.
Lakshya, meanwhile, is out to be the first Indian to win an Olympic medal in the men’s singles and has the country’s hopes riding on him, with all the other shuttlers from the country having been shown the exit.
“I’ve everything to play for and I will be ready,” said the 22-year-old Lakshya.
