KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 — Malaysia’s professional men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia continued his impressive form at the Orleans Masters in France, advancing to the quarter-finals after defeating India’s Srikanth Kidambi today.
Competing at the Palais des Sports, the world No. 8 had little trouble securing a straight-game victory, winning 21-11, 21-17. He will next face Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen for a spot in the semi-finals.
Nguyen progressed after his Japanese opponent Yushi Tanaka was forced to retire in the second game due to injury.
National mixed doubles pair Hoo Pang Ron and Cheng Su Yin also booked a spot in the quarter-finals, having overcome Taiwan’s Ming Che Lu and Hung En Tzu.
The Malaysian duo faced a tough challenge, dropping the first game 16-21 before staging a strong comeback to claim the next two games, 21-13, 21-16.
Hoo-Cheng are set to face Indonesia’s world No 10 pair Rehan Kusharjanto and Gloria Widjaja, who upset Malaysia’s top-seeded duo Cheng Tan Jie and Toh Ee Wei with a 21-8, 21-17 victory.
— Bernama
