Zii Jia back in the groove, ready to stamp his mark
LEE Zii Jia has put the past behind him and is raring to prove a point at the New Zealand Open, that starts today, in Auckland.
BA of Malaysia (BAM) coaching director Wong Choong Hann said the 21-year-old, who suffered a dip in form due to personal reasons in the last few tournaments, has shown improvement in training the last couple of weeks.
Commenting on the Kedahborn’s preparation ahead of the first tournament that offers Olympic ranking points, Choong Hann said: “Zii Jia has been very composed in training the last few weeks and that’s a good sign.
“He has also been working very hard to improve on his focus and game plan, he definitely can do it.
“However, the New Zealand Open should not be the one and only tournament to gauge him. There are many more tournaments ahead and he should take each and every one of it in his stride as part of the journey.
“He needs to earn it if he wants to be a world beater, which I believe he can.”
After reaching four quarter-finals on the trot at the start of the season, Zii Jia hit a brick wall, suffering three consecutive early round exits at the Swiss, Malaysia and Singapore Opens.
The World No 22 then took to social media complaining about financial problems and being treated unfairly.
“Due to various factors, he lost some momentum, but he has regained his composure, so I want to see him work hard on polishing his skills, learn more about the game and strategy so he can go on to become a well-equipped player,” added Choong Hann.
Zii Jia will face fourth seed Kenta Nishimoto of Japan in the first round tomorrow.
Others Malaysians in the men’s singles draw are Soong Joo Ven, Chong Wei Feng and Soo Teck Zhi.