KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Zii Jia may have to forget about competing in the Malaysia Open on Jan 7-12 as he has been diagnosed with a ligament injury on his right ankle.
The injury was confirmed by the independent shuttler's management team (Team LZJ) in its X account today.
Team LZJ stated that the injury is manageable, but didn't specify the time frame for Zii Jia to return to competitions.
"The team's priority is to get Zii Jia back to full health and peak physical condition before he returns to the court.
"Thus, Zii Jia's training programme and tournament plan for the upcoming season will be based on the medical advice and the examination of his support team."
Zii Jia picked up the injury during a group match against Li Shi Feng of China at the World Tour Finals on Friday and he was forced to concede a walkover.
Based on BWF regulations, his earlier victories over Denmark's world No. 2 Anders Antonsen and world No. 9 Chou Tien Chen of Taiwan were nullified.
The Malaysian would have earned US$50,000 (RM222,500) had he qualified for the semi-finals, but instead, he received only US$15,000 for his fourth place in Group A.
With just four weeks to go before the Malaysia Open, it looks highly unlikely that Zii Jia will play in the season opener.
Zii Jia is also on the lookout for a new coach as Wong Tat Meng will end his tenure on Dec 31.