KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Zii Jia will once again feature for Malaysia at the Badminton Asia Team Championships (BATC) in Selangor next month.
The 26-year-old, who suffered a painful first round exit at the ongoing Petronas Malaysia Open, posted on his Team LZJ social media that he has accepted the invitation from the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to play in the team event, which also serves as a regional qualifier for the Thomas and Uber Cup Finals in April.
In fact, the former All England champion is ready to forego the German Open (Feb 27-Mar 3), to play in the BATC on Feb 13-19.
"Stepping foot on home ground as a professional athlete is extraordinarily special.
"But the breakthrough that we sorely wanted in this edition of the Malaysia Open did not materialise.
"Second chances are hard to come by, especially one this swift; the opportunity to not only perform in Malaysia but with team Malaysia is something not to be wasted.
"Hence we can confirm that Zii Jia and Team LZJ with honour accept the invitation from BAM to serve at the upcoming BATC. When healthy and able, Zii Jia and Team LZJ will always heed the call of national duty," stated his social media post.
It remains to be seen if Zii Jia's inclusion could mean that Ng Tze Yong is suffering a serious injury, after being forced to retire midway through his first-round Malaysia Open match against Japan's Koki Watanabe on Wednesday.
Late last year, Timesport had reported that Tze Yong may be prioritised for the BATC, to collect Olympic ranking points.
At the previous edition two years ago, also in Selangor, the Malaysian men's team, then led by Zii Jia and men's doubles stars Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, clinched their maiden title after defeating Indonesia 3-0 in the final.