Badminton

Zii Jia avoids pressure in pursuit of Olympic glory

KUALA LUMPUR: A calm and collected Lee Zii Jia is not pressuring himself in his quest to become Malaysia's first Olympic champion.

On Sunday, the world No. 7 Malaysian played a relaxed game at Porte de la Chapelle Arena in Paris to subdue Sri Lanka's Viren Nettasinghe 21-14, 21-12 in his Group G match.

Zii Jia did not overexert himself, almost treating the match as a warm-up, beating his world No. 70 opponent in just 35 minutes in front of a packed venue.

"It is a good opening win for me. What I achieved was expected here against a lower-ranked opponent. Hopefully, things will get better from here on," the seventh seed told BWF after the match. "Everyone here aspires to stand on the Olympic podium. I will stay calm and avoid putting unnecessary pressure on myself."

Zii Jia is competing in his second Olympics after his last-16 exit at the delayed Tokyo Games, held in 2021 due to Covid-19.

Matches at Tokyo 2020 were held behind closed doors.

"The difference between Tokyo and Paris is definitely the audience. I can feel the vibe, and the environment here is good. The venue is packed to the brim daily. This is good for badminton. The fans were amazing and incredibly loud. I couldn't even hear the umpire during the match. It's different, but we all have to adapt," he said.

Zii Jia will take on Spain's Pablo Abian on Wednesday.

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