KUALA LUMPUR: Japanese Kodai Naraoka, who is Lee Zii Jia's opening round opponent in the Petronas Malaysia Open from Jan 10-15, may withdraw.
Kodai, the highest-ranked Japanese men's singles at world No 9, retired in the first-round of the All Japan Championships on Monday due to "multiple injuries". Kodai quit when trailing Ryoma Muramoto 12-10 in the third game.
Kodai's father-cum-coach, Hiroshi later revealed that his son has been nursing several injuries on his left knee and hip joint.
"The gruelling battle which lasted nearly two hours took its toll on him," Hiroshi told local sports daily Nikkan Sports.
It is not immediately known if Kodai will be able to recover in time for the Malaysia Open.
Should Kodai give the Super 1000 showpiece a miss, Liew Daren will be the replacement for the 32-man draw.
Kodai is touted as the successor to his fast-fading compatriot Kento Momota following his exploits this season.
Naraoka stamped his class by clinching the Vietnam Open for his sole World Tour title this year and was runner-up at the Singapore Open, Taiwan Open and Korea Masters.