BANGKOK, May 18 — Malaysia’s top men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia began his Thailand Open 2022 campaign with an easy win over Ade Resky Dwicahyo of Azerbaijan at the Impact Arena, here, today.
The sixth-seeded shuttler took 36 minutes to dispose of the Indonesian-born Azerbaijani shuttler 21-19, 21-9 in the first round.
In the first set, the 24-year took the lead but faced some resistance from his opponent which saw the score tied at 15-15 before racing to a 21-19 finish.
In the second set, Zii Jia stepped on the gas to pull away and win 21-9.
Zii Jia will take on German shuttler Kai Schaefer in the next round, tomorrow.
Meanwhile, professional shuttler Liew Daren stormed into the second round by defeating India’s Prannoy H.S. 21-17, 15-21, 21-15 in an hour and five minutes.
Daren will take on Japanese Koki Watanabe in the next round.
Up-and-coming shuttler Ng Tze Yong, however, lost to Taiwanese Wang Tzu Wei in the rubber set.
Wang did not have it easy though, as he had to slog for an hour and 8 minutes to beat Tze Yong, 21-12, 13-21, 21-19.
Meanwhile, independent mixed doubles pair Goh Soon Huat-Lai Shevon Jemie cleared the opening round in the Thai Open.
The duo took 25 minutes to beat Vinson Chui-Jennie Gai of the United States, 21-13, 21-12 in the first round.
The sixth-seeded pair will face Ishaan Bhatnagar and Tanisha Crasto of India in the next round.
Independent duo Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing, however, failed to clear the qualifying round.
The fifthh-seeded duo lost 17-21, 21-16, 13-21 to Germany’s Jones Ralfy Jansen-Linda Efler.
Meanwhile, national women’s singles ace S. Kisona crashed out in the first round after losing 21-14, 18-21, 19-21 to Indonesian Ruselli Hartawan in a match that lasted 59 minutes. — Bernama
