Arctic Open: Zii Jia must be wary of opponent who has beaten him this year

Lee Zii Jia won his first match in over two months after beating a Finnish opponent at the Arctic Open qualifying match to reach the main draw on Tuesday.

The professional shuttler overcame Finland’s Kalle Koljonen 21-12, 21-15 to reach the main draw where he will take on China’s Dong Tianyao.

Lee has fond memories of this Super 500 event, having won it back in 2023 when he beat Ng Tze Yong in an all-Malaysian final.

That victory, however, has become a distant memory for the 28-year-old who has not won anything since he claimed bronze at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The world number 56 suffered a new career low when he was dumped out in the opening round of a Super 100 event in Vietnam last month.

In addition to that, his coach Liew Daren was also criticized on social media for the shuttler’s slump.

Lee must also be wary of Dong who has already beaten him this year, in straight games at the Orleans Masters.