PETALING JAYA: Lee Zii Jia moved a step closer to defending his All England crown with a three-game quarterfinal victory over two-time world champion Kento Momota in Birmingham this morning.
The world No 7 shuttler had a storming start in the first game, racing to an 11-1 lead and surging 17-1 ahead after the interval before eventually wrapping the opener 21-7.
Second seed Momota, however, fought back to take the next game 21-13 and force a rubber. The Japanese world No 2 kept his challenge alive until the interval but Zii Jia fired nine straight winners to go 20-11 up.
An unforced error by the 2019 champion on match point then handed the 23-year-old Kedahan the match, which lasted 64 minutes.
At last year’s All England, Zii Jia also defeated Momota in the last eight en route to his first major title.
Zii Jia, who left the Badminton Association of Malaysia to go professional in January, will take on Lakshya Sen in the semifinals today.
The Indian booked his last four berth after his injured quarterfinal opponent Lu Guang Zu gave him a walkover. - FMT
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