KUALA LUMPUR: One morale-boosting win was all it took for a weary Lee Zii Jia to be back revitalised.
The world No. 11 revealed how he nearly decided to skip the French Open before going on to notch an impressive 21-15, 21-11 victory against China's Weng Hong Yang in the first round on Wednesday.
The win was certainly sweet for Zii Jia, especially after being denied back-to-back victories by world No. 19 Hong Yang, who outclassed him in Sunday's Denmark Open final.
Including the Hangzhou Asian Games, Zii Jia is competing in his fourth consecutive tournament this week.
He has been going great guns in Europe, notably winning the Arctic Open in Finland two weeks ago — his first title in 17 months.
During the post-match interview at the Denmark Open final, Zii Jia hinted that he was having second thoughts about playing the French Open.
Doubts about him pulling out of the tournament intensified when his sister and manager, Zii Yii, informed Timesport about disruptions to Zii Jia's travel arrangements.
Caught in a prolonged transit in Amsterdam, Zii Jia only managed to arrive in France on Tuesday, just a day before his first match.
Zii Jia said his decision to play on was all worth it in the end.
"In the moment I won, I was so happy," said the 2021 All England champion in a post-match interview with the Badminton World Federation.
"Before the match, I thought about a walkover as four tournaments in a row after the Asian Games take a toll and my team have been concerned about my body condition.
"I chose to play at least one game and see how I am. Physically, I'm feeling great. All the fatigue is forgotten. I'm buzzing and running on adrenaline."
Zii Jia is slated to play China's Asian Games champion, Li Shi Feng, on Thursday.