KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Zii Jia is looking to regain his form at the Arctic Open on Oct 8-13.
The world No. 5 hopes for a similar script as last year he bounced back from a dry spell to capture the Arctic Open title and finish runner-up at the Denmark Open.
The independent shuttler is heading back to those tournaments next month in a bid to regain his momentum.
At the 2023 Arctic Open, Zii Jia won his first world tour title in 17 months in Vantaa, Finland. His previous success was the 2022 Thailand Open.
The victory also ended Zii Jia's dismal run last year where he crashed in the first or second round in 10 tournaments.
Though Zii Jia won an Olympic medal, a bronze, in August, he fell in the first round of the Japan and China Opens after that.
Olympic champion and World No. 1 Viktor Axelsen of Denmark has decided to skip the Arctic Open, but stars like Denmark's Anders Antonsen (No. 3), China's Li Shiefeng (No. 6), Indonesia's Jonatan Christie (No. 7), Japan's Kodai Naraoka (No. 4), Thailand's world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn (No. 8) and Indonesia's Anthony Gintng (No. 10) will compete in Vantaa.
The competition will be even tougher at the Denmark Open (Oct 15-20) with the presences of World No. 1 Shi Yu Qi of China and Axelsen.
Badminton legend Rashid Sidek said Zii Jia should be able to make a strong comeback based on his track record in Europe.
"Zi Jia did well to bounce back to win the Arctic Open and reach the Denmark Open final last year. This is his chance to prove the critics wrong," said Rashid.
"His defeats in Japan and China would have left his fans concerned, but he seems to play well in European tournaments and he should be aiming for a good run there.
"Normally, European players are hard to beat in these tournaments, and Zii Jia has to be aware of Axelsen, Antonsen and a few others.
"Generally the form of players will drop after the Olympics. While some return to form fairly quickly, others take longer to regain their best condition.
"There are some new players who have been playing well and they will also have analysed Zii Jia's strengths and weaknesses.
"So, it will be important for Zii Jia to be in a better physical condition to have a good run in Europe."
Zii Jia did mention that after his China Open exit, some physical niggles had prevented him from being at his best.
He had also expressed his desire to compete in the Arctic Open, and another strong showing in Vantaa could be the tonic that the Malaysian ace needs to regain his momentum.