KUALA LUMPUR: It's a repeat of the 2020 All England quarter-finals with Lee Zii Jia taking on defending champion Chen Long in the Tokyo Olympics round of 16 tomorrow.
On a day that saw world No 1 Kento Momota of Japan knocked out of the men's singles, ninth seed Zii Jia carved out a 21-17, 21-5 win over France's Brice Leverdez in their final Group M tie at the Musashino Forest Sport Plaza.
In Group N, Chen Long took pole position after defeating Spain's Pablo Abian 21-11, 21-10.
On his chances, Zii Jia said: "Chen Long is one of my idols in badminton. I grew up watching him play.
"We also have a lot of respect for each other.
"Our head-to-head record is 2-2, and it's always a close battle with him. I'm really looking forward to playing him."
South Korean Heo Kwang Hee produced the biggest shock today, with the world No 38 stunning world No 1 Momota 21-15, 21-19 to top Group A with two wins.
Kwang Hee, like Taiwan's Chou Tien Chen who topped Group P, earned automatic qualification to the last eight stage.
On Momota's early exit from the competition, Zii Jia said: "I'm really shocked, but it also proves that the Olympics is anybody's game.
"If Momota can be knocked out, anybody can. Even Tien Chen barely made it through the group stages.
"This is my first Olympics, and I'm grateful to be in good condition. I have prepared well for this, so I'm hoping to have a good tournament."
Other notable names who cleared the group stages today included former world champion Viktor Axelsen, Indonesia's Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, 2018 Asian Games champion Jonatan Christie and World Tour Finals champion Anders Antonsen of Denmark.