

BADMINTON

 Thursday, 17 Aug 2023

Stay cool: Lee Zii Jia has been told by coach Wong Tat Meng to relax and enjoy himself at the
worlds in Copenhagen next week.

PETALING JAYA: Coach Wong Tat Meng doesn’t believe in miracles and he just wants
independent singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia to enjoy playing rather than pushing for instant
results at the World Championships in Copenhagen next week.

Zii Jia, the world No. 13, is unseeded and is drawn to play fifth seed Jonatan Christie of
Indonesia in the first round.

Tat Meng had diverted the attention away from that crunch match and stated that the
seedings are not the main concern for Zii Jia currently.

“Whether you are seeded or not, a player must win all his matches in order to be the
champion. This is the reality not just for Zii Jia but any player. But my hope is to see him
relaxed and enjoy the tournament,” said Tat Meng.

“Zii Jia is not seeded. He himself has said that without seedings, he can play freely without
any pressure.

“Because he has been under a lot of pressure in training and also in tournaments, I hope it
will change (in Copenhagen).”
Under Tat Meng’s guidance, Zii Jia lost his first two tournaments – the Korean and Japan
Opens – in the first round last month but improved in the third tournament recently – the
Australian Open, where he reached the semis.

The vastly experienced Tat Meng has not made changes to his new training programme prior
to the World Championships, which begins on Monday (Aug 21).

However, the 55-year-old has been engaging in regular pep talks to motivate Zii Jia and
focusing on match analysis and strategies before the major event.

“I’m not going to make many changes in his training programme after the three tournaments
because he is still adapting to my system,” added Tat Meng.

“There has been a lot of discussion about his thinking, and the psychological side in
approaching a game.”

Zii Jia does not only face an early test in the World Championships but also in the China Open
on Sept 5-10 where he will play world No. 4 Kodai Naraoka of Japan in the first round.

Besides Zii Jia, Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) shuttler Ng Tze Yong will also play in
the World Championships where he will open his campaign against Zhao Junpeng of China.

Tze Yong is also down to play in the China Open where he will meet Malaysian Masters
champion H.S. Prannoy of India in the first round.
 LEE ZII JIA WANTS ENJOY THE GAME

Lee Zii Jia ask is a Malaysia professional badminton player. He was the men singles won his first BWF
Super 1000 title at the 2021 All England open. Lee Zii jia is the 2022 men singles Asian champion,
winning the title at the 2022 Badminton Asia Championship. Lee Zii Jia has been told by coach Wong
Tat Meng to relax and enjoy himself at the worlds in Copenhagen next week. After that, Tat Meng
had diverted the attention away from that crunch match and stated that the seedings are not the
main concern for Zii Jia currently. In conclusion, Lee Zii Jia should work hard to win and need to
strength himself physically and mentally to become world champion.beside that, Lee Zii jia also need
to listen to words from the coach and play for country with more enthusiasm.