Badminton

Getting Zii Jia to peak for All-England

LEE Zii Jia must hit top form in 14 days if he wishes to successfully defend his All England crown in Birmingham on March 16-20.

Zii Jia's coach, Indra Wijaya, said the World No 7 has yet to peak despite leading Malaysia to the Badminton Asia Team Championships (BATC) title last week at Shah Alam.

Indra said: "Honestly, Zii Jia has yet to hit top form. Despite winning all his matches in the BATC, he is not at his best yet.

"We still have about two weeks, including the German Open (March 8-13) to prepare before the All England.

"Zii Jia has resumed training after the BATC. I was pleased with how he handled himself under pressure at the competition. That's positive.

Indra, who left BAM recently to join Zii Jia, said the 24-year-old had lost some ground in terms of quality training after he was embroiled in controversy for quitting the national team abruptly last month.

Zii Jia had cited pressure and a regimented lifestyle at the Academy Badminton Malaysia as the main reasons for his decision to leave the national set-up.

"Zii Jia lost out a little on quality training because a lot was going on when he decided to quit the national team. And right after that, we had to focus on the BATC.

"Having said that, we will take it one step at a time, starting with the German Open before moving on to the All England," said Indra.

Zii Jia, seeded sixth, faces a tricky All England draw as he is up against Japan's Kenta Nishimoto in the opening round.

Barring any upsets, a repeat of last year's quarter-finals is on the cards as Zii Jia is slated to face former world No 1 Kento Momota again in the last eight.

The other big names in the bottom half of the draw are world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore, his first round opponent Anders Antonsen of Denmark, and former Asian junior champion Lakhsya Sen of India.

The other Malaysian in the fray is 2018 World Championships bronze medallist Liew Daren who is currently Zii Jia's sparring partner.

Daren will open his campaign against France's Toma Junior Popov.

"There is nothing much to be commented on the draw. It's the All England, you are bound to face the best players in the world.

"For now, it's about preparing Zii Jia to be in his best shape before travelling to Europe," Indra said.

Most Popular
Related Article
Says Stories