Fine form: Lee Zii Jia gives Malaysia a flying start in Group D tie against Hong Kong.
CHENGDU: Malaysia got off to a brilliant start in the Thomas Cup Finals after beating Hong Kong 5-0 in the opening Group D tie.
Men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia gave an astounding show to put the team in the lead by beating Lee Cheuk Yiu 21-18, 21-18 at the Hi-Tech Sports Center in Chengdu on Saturday (April 27).
World No. 10 Zii Jia stayed cool in a tight match against the world No. 15 Cheuk Yiu to come away with the impressive win in 45 minutes .
It was the 26-year-old’s second victory over Cheuk Yiu in four meetings in international tournaments.
"I feel relieved to win and give the first point for my team," said Zii Jia.
"Overall, I’m happy with my performance and I hope to maintain this in my upcoming matches."
Men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik then easily swept aside Hong Kong’s Law Cheuk Him-Yeung Shing Choi 21-16, 21-12 to give Malaysia a 2-0 lead.
"Everything was good for us in the match today," said Aaron.
"Zii Jia’s win gave us the advantage and we wanted to keep the momentum."
Buoyed by his teammates’ wins, Leong Jun Hao brilliantly came from behind to give the team the third and winning point with a hard fought 17-21, 21-12, 21-15 victory over Angus Ng Ka Long in a thrilling match lasting 61 minutes.
There were anxious moments when world No. 37 Jun Hao dropped the opening game but he stepped up to control the second and third games in style to come away with the morale-boosting win over world No. 27 Angus.
It was their first meeting in the international stage and credit to Jun Hao for not caving under pressure.
"I prepared well for this match by watching videos of Angus’ matches," said Jun Hao.
"My teammates’ support helped me to come back and I’m really happy to give the team the win."
With the win, Malaysia are as good as assured for a place in the quarter-finals.
Men’s doubles pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani went on to beat scratch pair Reginald Lee-Tang Chun Man 21-19, 21-18 in the second doubles.
Debutant Justin Hoh then made it a perfect day for Malaysia with a superb 21-17, 19-21, 21-17 victory over Chan Yin Chak in the third singles.
The 20-year-old Justin, who is currently ranked No. 232 in the world, fought hard to stun world No. 91 Yin Chak to help Malaysia keep a clean sheet.
The last two results did not really matter as Malaysia had already sealed their opening group game victory by taking the first three points.
The squad will play Algeria on Sunday and favourites Denmark on Tuesday. The top two teams in the group will advance to the quarter-finals.
