Steady progress: Lee Zii Jia in action against Toma Junior Popov of France in the last-16 match. Zii Jia won 21-13, 24-22. — Bernama
LEE Zii Jia was up against an entire stadium, and the Malaysian felt the heat as he struggled to tame Frenchman Toma Junior Popov in the last 16 of the Paris Olympics at the Adidas Arena in Port de la Chapelle.
Buoyed by the partisan crowd, Popov had secured a sensational upset over 2020 Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Anthony Ginting of Indonesia in the group match to advance to the last 16. And he was looking to do it again against the Malaysian.Zii Jia, possibly sensing the threat, played sensibly and secured a 21-13, 24-22 win in 47 minutes but not before some anxious moments towards the crucial stages of the second game.
Popov saved two match points when Zii Jia was at 18-20 but the Malaysian eventually wrapped up the contest.
“Ginting playing in France is like us facing Ginting at Istora (Senayan),” Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen had tweeted after the Frenchman’s victory over Ginting on Wednesday.
It was a warning that Zii Jia had to heed. The Malaysian did not let the fans unnerve him and spoil his chances of progressing into the quarter-finals for the first time at the Olympics.
In Tokyo three years ago, Zii Jia lost in the last 16 to eventual silver medallist Chen Long.
The Malaysian will face Denmark’s world No. 3 Anders Antonsen in the last eight today.
“It was a tough second game and I was expecting it to go to the rubber. The crowd here is really crazy,” said Zii Jia.
“I just tried to calm myself down and stayed focused on every point. My priority was to face the crowd and be calm on court.
“I’m confident going into the last eight where I will play with my good friend Anders,” he said.
Zii Jia also had to stave off obvious comparisons between him and Malaysian legend Lee Chong Wei after the match.
Asked if he could go one better than Chong Wei and become the first Malaysian to win gold, Zii Jia replied: “Chong Wei is a legend and he is irreplaceable, and his achievements are fantastic. Those are unbreakable records.”
“I have a lot of respect for him. I am trying to focus on this Olympics and do my best.
“If at all I go all the way, it will be my own achievement and it doesn’t mean that I can replace Chong Wei. We are different.”
Zii Jia also paid tribute to his coach Wong Tat Meng and his sister Lee Zii Yi, who have continued to support him in his professional career.
Zii Yii is also in Paris to cheer him on as the shuttler chases his dreams of becoming Malaysia’s first gold medallist at the Olympics.
MALAYSIANS IN ACTION TODAY
BADMINTON
Women’s doubles semi-finals
2.30pm: Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah vs Chen Qingchen-Jia Yifan (Chn)
Men’s doubles semi-finals
4.50pm: Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik vs Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang (Chn)
Men’s singles
9pm: Lee Zii Jia vs Anders Antonsen (Den)
GOLF
Men’s individual
3pm: Gavin Green
SAILING
Women’s dinghy
6.15pm: Nur Shazrin Mohd Latif
Men’s dinghy
9.35pm: Khairulnizam Mohd Afendy
RESULTS
Malaysians unless stated
BADMINTON
Quarter-finals
Men’s doubles: Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik bt Satwiksairaj Rankireddy; Chirag Shetty), 13-21, 21-14, 21-16; Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang (Chn) bt Fajar Alfian-Rian Ardianto (Ina) 24-22, 22-20; Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen (Den) bt Kang Min-hyuk-Seo Seung-jae (Kor) 21-19, 22-20; Wang Chi-Lin-Lee Yang (Tpe) bt Supak Jomkoh-Kittinupong Kedren (Tha) 21-14, 21-17.
Women’s doubles: Chen Qingchen-Jia Yifan (Chn) bt Gabriela Stoeva-Stefani Stoeva (Bul) 21-15, 21-8; Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah bt Kim So-yeong-Kong Hee-yong (Kor) 21-12, 21-13; Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning (Chn) bt Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee (Kor) 21-9, 21-13; Nami Matsuyama-Chiharu Shida (Jpn) bt Maiken Fruegaard-Sara Thygesen (Den) 21-7, 21-12.
Mixed doubles: Zheng Siwei-Huang Yaqiong (Chn) bt Feng Yanzhe-Huang Dongping (Chn) 21-16, 21-15; Yuta Watanabe-Arisa Higashino (Jpn) bt Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Sapsiree Taerattanachai (Tha) 23-21, 21-14; Seo Seung-jae-Chae Yu-jung (Kor) bt Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (Hkg) 21-15, 21-10; Kim Won-ho-Jeong Na-eun (Kor) 21-19, 21-14.
Last 16
Men’s singles: Lee Zii Jia bt Toma Junior Popov (Fra) 21-13, 24-22; Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Tha) bt Kenta Nishimoto (Jpn) 16-21, 21-14, 21-12; Chou Tien-chen (Tpe) bt Kodai Naraoka (Jpn) 21-12, 21-16; Lakshya Sen (Ind) bt H.S. Prannoy (Ind) 21-12, 21-6.
