KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 13 — Professional men’s singles player Lee Zii Jia has made an early exit from the 2026 India Open after losing his first-round match at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex today.
The 2024 Olympic Games bronze medallist seemed to be trying to find his rhythm during his three-game loss against Rasmus Gemke of Denmark.
His performance was uneven in the first game, which he lost 13-21, rallying to win the second 21-18, but failed to maintain the momentum and lost the decider 18-21.
This is Lee's second first-round exit this season, following his early exit from the Malaysia Open last week.
He is trying to make a comeback after withdrawing in the first round of the 2025 China Masters in September last year due to injury.
Meanwhile, national men’s doubles pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun beat fellow Malaysians Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub Azriyn-Tan Wee Kiong 21-16, 21-15 today to set up a meeting with French pair Christo Popov-Toma Junior Popov, who beat another Malaysian pair Choong Hon Jian-Muhammad Haikal 21-11, 21-19.
Finally, another Malaysian doubles pair, Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi, were also eliminated, losing 15-21, 18-21 to Hariharan Amsakarunan-M.R. Arjun of India.
