Lee Zii Jia is looking forward to doing battle with his former team-mate Loh Kean Yew at the upcoming Fuzhou China Open in November and getting back to winning ways after a disappointing European tour.
The Malaysian men’s singles was back home training at the national centre in Bukit Kiara after he suffered two opening round defeats to Chen Long and Anthony Ginting at the recent Denmark Open and French Open respectively.
Both the early exits also put him out of automatic qualification to the World Tour Finals in December, after dropping from seventh to ninth, meaning he needs to do well at the upcoming Super 750 tournament if he wants to make the cut.
It is easier said than done, as a potential showdown against world number one Kento Momota beckons in the second round.
The Japanese was on a 23-match winning run to claim the World Championships, China Open, Korea Open and Denmark Open before his streak was ended by Ginting at the French Open.
But first, a good outing in China for Lee will begin with victory over Loh in the opening round.
"I am looking forward to playing him. We are both potential medalists at the SEA Games [in November], and this encounter should make it exciting.
"We also played each other a lot during our younger days," said Lee.
Malaysian-born shuttler Loh moved to Singapore when he was 13 after receiving a Foreign Sports Scholarship from the Singapore Badminton Association.
The 22-year-old made headlines in January when he came through qualifiers to upset Chinese ace Lin Dan and clinch the Thailand Masters.
Since entering the senior level, Lee and Loh only met each other once at the Smiling Fish International Challenge in 2016, which Lee won in straight games.
The 21-year-old also conceded he has not gelled with men’s singles coach Hendrawan since the Indonesian began overseeing his development in July.
"I have not had much time with [Hendrawan]. There are so many back-to-back tournaments and it has been difficult to see an impact.
"It’s not easy because I have had many coaches since young, but I believe in time, we will find the right combination," he said.
Nicolas Anil
Tue Oct 29 2019
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