BWF China Open 2024: Lee Zii Jia crashes out in first round - and fast
The Paris 2024 men's singles bronze medallist drops the second game 21-2 in a nightmarish defeat to Watanabe Koki of Japan at the Super 1000 event.
Badminton
Lee Zii Jia’s time at the BWF China Open was brief.
The Malaysian shuttler lasted less than half an hour - 29 minutes to be exact - as he went out in straight sets in the first round to Japan’s Watanabe Koki on Tuesday (17 September) in Changzhou, People’s Republic of China.
The second game was particularly forgettable for the Paris 2024 Olympic men’s singles bronze medallist, who lost 21-15, 21-2. Lee didn’t win his first point until Watanabe was up 15-0.
Lee, the third seed here, had a 9-1 lead in the opening set but allowed the world No. 15 to claw back into the match and even the score 13-13.
Watanabe went on to take eight of the next 10 points to go up a game ahead of the avalanche that was to come.
Watanabe appears to have Lee’s number as he improved to 3-0 for his career against the Malaysian, who has fallen in the first round in his two tournaments since winning his first Olympic medal in Paris.