Zii Jia's return postponed after Japan Open withdrawal

Lee Zii Jia’s return to competitive action is set to be delayed after the shuttler withdrew from the Japan Open (July 15-20) next week.

Lee is the only men’s singles shuttler to have pulled out of the Super 750 event thus far, with confirmation of his withdrawal confirmed on the Badminton World Federation (BWF) website.

The 27-year-old last saw action at the All-England, where he lost in three games against Hong Kong’s Angus Ng Ka Long.

Lee is currently granted a protected ranking by the BWF for up to 12 months, which allows him to participate in top-tier competitions during this period.

So while he has slipped to 27 on the world rankings, Lee can still compete in top events using his original ranking of ninth.

The Kedah-born had applied for protected ranking back in March, so he still has time to make his return and even get a decent draw in upcoming competitions.

It is unclear if Lee will feature at the China Open later this month.

Last week, the shuttler had posted a cryptic message on social media which led speculations amongst fans on his mental wellbeing.

Lee has not issued an explanation on his posting, with his Instagram profile picture also now changed to black.