BWF Australian Open 2023: Lee Zii Jia reaches semi-finals while Anthony Ginting knocked out
Lee Zii Jia's winning run continues in Sydney as he reaches the last four, while India's HS Prannoy eliminates top seed Anthony Ginting.
Badminton
Lee Zii Jia is just one win away from making his first final of the badminton season after winning his quarter-final match at the BWF Australian Open 2023 in Sydney on Friday (4 August).
The Malaysian was made to work extremely hard by compatriot Ng Tze Yong, as the teammates duelled for a remarkable 83 minutes before Lee sealed a 17-21, 26-24, 21-19 win to book his place in the last four.
While Lee's performances have not looked anywhere near his top form this week in Sydney, the 25-year-old has dug deep and found the right shots to make when needed – something that has been lacking for months from the Malaysian's game.
After four straight first-round exits, Lee now finds himself in the semi-finals of a BWF World Tour event, where he will face People's Republic of China's Weng Hong Yang.
Weng claimed another big scalp on Friday, taking down Chinese Taipei fifth seed Chou Tien-chen 21-10, 21-16 to add to his victory earlier this week over second seed Naraoka Kodai.
In the opposite half of the draw, India's H.S. Prannoy is the last seed standing after the sixth seed took out Indonesia's top-seeded Anthony Ginting.
Ginting started well but appeared to fade as the match wore on, with Prannoy sealing a 16-21, 21-17, 21-14 victory.
It will be an all-Indian semi-final as Prannoy is due to face Priyanshu Rajawat, who stunned former world number one Kidambi Srikanth 21-13, 21-8.