BANGKOK, May 20 — Malaysian men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia had to work hard before defeating Indonesian Shesar Hiren Rhustavito to advance into the Thailand Open 2022 semi-finals at the Impact Arena, here, today.

Zii Jia will now face compatriot Liew Daren, who stormed into the last four after defeating China’s Zhao Jun Peng 21-10, 19-21, 21-19, for a place in Sunday’s final.

Zii Jia, currently ranked World No. 6 and now the highest-seeded player left in the men’s singles competition, took 56 minutes to clinch the 21-10, 14-21, 21-16 victory over Shesar Hiren.

The 24-year-old had a good game in the first set but could not maintain his momentum before losing 14-21 in the second.

The rubber set turned out to be a testimony of Zii Jia’s mental strength. Trailing 4-12 at one stage, the reigning men’s singles Asian champion crawled back into the game as he picked point after point to tie the score at 15-15.

There was no looking back after that as he shifted gears for a 21-16 win and a semifinal slot.

Today’s win brings his unbeaten streak to 11 matches but the independent shuttler admitted that it had been a tough match against the Indonesian.

"I lacked confidence and focus today. My fitness is okay, but I’m slightly tired mentally, especially after (competing) in high-intensity tournaments — the Asian Championships and Thomas Cup. I will do my best in the semifinals tomorrow,” he told Bernama.

Darren also had to slog to earn his semifinal spot.

"It will be a tough game against Zii Jia tomorrow. I will do my best,” he said.

Meanwhile, Malaysia’s top doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik continued their good run and checked into the semi-finals tomorrow after defeating Taiwanese pair Lee Yang-Wang Chi Lin 21-17, 21-10 in only 29-minutes.

The Tokyo Olympics bronze-medalists and sixth-seeded pair will play against Indonesian pair Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto.

Another Malaysian pair, Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani crashed out in the quarter-finals today losing to Japanese duo Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi 21-18, 21-17.

National women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah, however, had better fortunes, defeating Japanese pair Yuki Fukushima-Sayaka Hirota in straight sets.

The duo will now take on China’s Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan.

Meanwhile, independent mixed doubles pair Goh Soon Huat-Lai Shevon Jemie suffered a straight-game defeat to Japanese duo Yuta Watanabe-Arisa Higashino 18-21, 17-21. — Bernama