Lee Zii Jia faces Singapore's Teh Jia Heng at Hylo Open after settling family court dispute
Back in the world's top 50 after an Arctic Open semi-final, Lee Zii Jia opens his Hylo Open campaign against Singapore's Teh Jia Heng on Wednesday.
Lee Zii Jia returns to competition at the Hylo Open in Saarbrücken this week with an all-Southeast Asian first-round match against Singapore's Teh Jia Heng. The singles first round is scheduled for Wednesday, 28 October, with play due to start at 9am in Germany, or 4pm Malaysia time, and it is Zii Jia's first tournament since he settled a High Court case with members of his family.
Back on the rise
Zii Jia's most recent event was the Arctic Open in Vantaa, Finland, earlier this month, where he showed some of his best form of the season. Ranked 56th going into the tournament, he beat Chinese Taipei's Su Li Yang 21-17, 21-12 and then knocked out France's world No. 2 Christo Popov 21-11, 21-16 in the quarter-finals.
His run ended in the semi-finals with a three-game loss to Denmark's Anders Antonsen, 11-21, 21-15, 16-21. The result lifted him to 42nd in the world rankings published on 13 October, back inside the top 50, a target he had set himself. It also made him Malaysia's second-highest-ranked men's singles player.
Court case resolved
Off the court, the past few months have been dominated by a legal dispute over LZJ Management Sdn Bhd, the company that handles his affairs. Zii Jia filed the case in July against the company, his father and his sister. On 20 October the High Court in Kuala Lumpur recorded a consent judgment settling the matter.
Under the agreed terms, the company will hold an extraordinary general meeting on 31 October at its own cost. Until then, his father and sister may not approve or pay themselves director's fees, bonuses or other benefits beyond monthly salaries, or pass company resolutions without the court's permission. Zii Jia holds 90 per cent of the company's shares. The EGM falls on the same day as the Hylo Open semi-finals.
The draw ahead
Zii Jia is unseeded in Saarbrücken. If he beats Teh, he will play the winner of Japan's fifth seed Kodai Naraoka against a qualifier in the second round. Antonsen, who beat him in Finland, is the top seed and is in the same half of the draw, as is Indonesia's fourth seed Jonatan Christie.
Popov is the second seed, with his brother Toma Junior Popov seeded sixth and fellow Frenchman Alex Lanier seeded third. India's Lakshya Sen is the seventh seed.
Cheam June Wei also in action
Malaysia has a second men's singles player in the main draw. Cheam June Wei meets India's Kiran George in the first round, also on Wednesday. Their quarter of the draw includes Sen and second seed Christo Popov, so a deep run would mean beating at least one seed.
The tournament is a Super 500 event and runs until Sunday, 1 November, with finals from 2pm in Germany, or 9pm in Malaysia. Organisers confirm the order of play a day in advance, so exact match times for Wednesday will be known on Tuesday.
Key takeaways
- Lee Zii Jia meets Singapore's Teh Jia Heng in the Hylo Open first round on Wednesday, with play starting at 4pm Malaysia time.
- He reached the Arctic Open semi-finals this month, beating world No. 2 Christo Popov, and climbed to world No. 42.
- His High Court dispute with family members over LZJ Management was settled on 20 October.
- Cheam June Wei also plays on Wednesday, against India's Kiran George.
FAQ
Who does Lee Zii Jia play at the Hylo Open? He faces Singapore's Teh Jia Heng in the first round on Wednesday, 28 October.
Is Lee Zii Jia's legal case finished? Yes. The Kuala Lumpur High Court recorded a consent judgment on 20 October, with a company EGM set for 31 October.
How did Lee Zii Jia do at the Arctic Open? He reached the semi-finals, beating Christo Popov before losing to Anders Antonsen in three games.
Sources: BWF, Bernama, Malay Mail, BadmintonPlanet, HYLO Open