PETALING JAYA: Professional men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia faces an unusual route at the Arctic Open when he begins his campaign from the qualifying round on Tuesday after skipping the Asian Games in Japan.
The Malaysian will face Japan’s Minoru Koga in his opening qualifying match in Vantaa, Finland.
The winner will advance to the main draw, where China’s Dong Tianyao awaits in the first round.
Said coach Liew Daren: “Zii Jia will be competing in this tournament.”
“Obviously, the last two tournament results have not been good. We can only keep working hard and hope better results will come.”
The 28-year-old Zii Jia will be on a mission to re-establish himself on the World Tour after suffering early round defeats at the Korean Masters in August and Vietnam Open in September.
It is unfamiliar territory for Zii Jia, who won the Arctic Open in 2023, but with his world ranking currently at No. 56, the Malaysian will have to fight his way into the main draw.
Only the top 32 players are guaranteed places in the top-tier tournaments, while lower-ranked players can gain entry depending on withdrawals.
The professional shuttler was invited to represent Malaysia at the Asian Games but declined as he felt he was not in his best form.
In the main draw, reigning Asian Games champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand is the top seed, while France’s Christo Popov is seeded second.
The other seeded players are Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen and Lin Chun-yi, Denmark’s Anders Antonsen, China’s Li Shifeng, France’s Toma Popov and Japan’s Koki Watanabe.
Malaysia’s other representatives are Aaron Tai-Yap Roy King, Nur Azriyn Ayub-Tan Wee Kiong and Chia Weijie-Teo Ee Yi in the men’s doubles, and Hoo Pang Ron-Lai Pei Jing, Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie and Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien in the mixed doubles.
