All England: Zii Jia believes he has regained self confidence

KUALA LUMPUR, March 19 (Bernama) -- The country's top men's singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia, believes that he has gained back his self confidence at the 2023 All England badminton championships. 

Despite losing in the semi-finals last night, the world number four professional player, said the prestigious Super 1000 tournament proved to be his redemption after a series of inconsistent performances. 

The 2021 All England champion said the tournament helped him to believe in himself again. 

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"I had a tough opening this year and I doubted myself a lot over being such a high-ranked player. I doubted if I was going to become a top player again.

"I think I've proved it in this tournament, and yeah it was the semis but I will take it step by step. I believe I will get better and better," he told the tournament's official website. 

Last night, Zii Jia, 24, lost 19-21, 13-21 to Shi Yu Qi of China in the All England semi-finals at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.

Yu Qi will face compatriot Li Shi Feng, who ousted Denmark’s Anders Antonsen 21-11, 19-21, 21-18 last night, in the title decider today.

Zii Jia is next scheduled to play in the Swiss Open and will face Shi Feng in the opening round. 

Zii Jia has endured a dismal campaign so far this year, having been knocked out in the first round of the season-opening Malaysia Open and the second round of three other tournaments - the India Open, Indonesia Masters and most recently the German Open.

His last title victory was the 2021 Thailand Open success, last May.

-- BERNAMA