Kuala Lumpur: The World No. 10 men’s singles player Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia was forced to work hard before securing a place in the second round of the YONEX Thailand Open, in Bangkok on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old looked worried after he lost the first set 13-21 to India’s HS Prannoy before sweeping the next two sets 21-14, 21-8 in the first round.
Lee is set to play another Indian player Kidambi Srikanth in the second round.
The World No. 14 Srikanth, on Wednesday, had described COVID-19 tests conducted at the tournament as “unacceptable” in a tweet that showed images of blood dripping down his face following a fourth mandatory test on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Kisona who was given a free victory on Tuesday after India’s Saina Nehwal was initially tested positive for COVID-19; but the situation took a 360 degree turn when further tests found that the 2012 London Olympic bronze medalist was free from COVID-19, and the Badminton World Federation (BWF) decided to move the match to Wednesday.
Kisona had to accept the loss when she went down to Nehwal 15-21, 15-21.
Another Malaysian women’s singles player, Soniia Cheah, also exited in the first round after losing to the seventh seed from South Korea, An Se Young 15-21, 12-21.
