Zii Jia earns semi-final meeting with world no 3 Chou Tien Chen

National men's singles player Lee Zii Jia qualified for his first semi-final of a major tournament this year when he beat Indonesia's Shesar Hiren Rhustavito at the Thailand Open in Bangkok yesterday.

Zii Jia stopped the gallant run of the Indonesian qualifier by winning 11-21, 21-14, 21-13 in 50 minutes in their quarterfinal match.

The 21-year-old player is the only Malaysian to qualify for the semi-finals tomorrow.

“It is a breakthrough for me after six quarter-finals (appearances). I told myself that I have to win this game. No matter how, I must break through this situation. Finally I did it and I'm happy.

“But I still have a match tomorrow. I don't want to celebrate too much. Just want to get some rest. Hopefully, there will be good news again tomorrow,” he said.

Ranked 17th in the world, Zii Jia will face a tough hurdle today, when he takes on world number three Chou Tien Chen of Taiwan, who defeated Japan's Kenta Nishimoto 21-12, 21-16 in another quarter-final match.

Women's shuttler Soniia Cheah's solid run was halted by world number four and top seed Chen Yu Fei of China, who beat her 21-15, 21-8 in 41 minutes.

“My opponent is much stronger. She had control, especially in the second set. In the first set, I had tried my best to stay in rally with her but I made some mistakes and lost.

“In the second set, she gained confidence and kept up the pressure on me. Overall, I've tried my very best and I know I need to train harder to match them,” she added.

Malaysia's professional doubles pair Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong were also shown the exit, losing to third seeds Li Jun Hui-Liu Yu Chen of China 16-21, 19-21. - Bernama