KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Zii Jia’s long-awaited comeback ended in a crushing blow as he crashed out in the opening round of the World Championships in Paris on Monday.
The world No. 52 Malaysian never found his rhythm and was swept aside 21-17, 21-11 by South Korea‘s Jeon Hyeok Jin.
Speaking to the Badminton World Federation afterwards, Zii Jia admitted the defeat was a sobering reminder of how far he still has to go following five months on the sidelines.
Here are excerpts from his post-match interview:
Q: Coming into this tournament, there was a lot of media attention on you. How do you feel now that you’ve played your first match?
Zii Jia: I’m happy to complete the first match without any pain and without any injuries. That’s the most important for me. For the upcoming target, I want to find back my tournament feeling.
Q: With all the pressure and attention, how difficult was it?
Zii Jia: It’s part of my career. I can’t avoid it, so I just have to face it.
Q: How do you deal with the pressure — or do you just not care?
Zii Jia: No, I don’t really care about it.
Q: You’ve been through a difficult six months. What was the toughest part for you?
Zii Jia: The middle part of rehab. I was desperate to get back to training and curious why the injury healed so slowly. The progress was very boring for me. It’s my first experience dealing with this kind of situation, so I’m still learning. I’m just happy I got through it.
Q: How would you rate your performance today on a scale of 1 to 10?
Zii Jia: Five. From a physical and endurance point of view, that’s where I need to improve. That’s something I have to go back and work on with the team.
Q: What about match feel?
Zii Jia: Match feel is okay. I’ve had enough experience from tournaments before, so as long as I’m competing, I don’t worry about it.
Q: There were a lot of fans supporting you today. Any message to them?
Zii Jia: Be patient — not just for them, but for myself as well. I definitely have confidence that I can get back to who I used to be.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
