KUALA LUMPUR: While it was just a quarter-final, Lee Zii Jia clearly relished advancing this far at the China Masters Super 750 in Shenzhen.
The world No. 11 showcased his prowess, defeating Lu Guang Zu 21-10, 21-12 in 40 minutes — a positive comeback after the first-round defeat at the Kumamoto Masters Super 500 in Japan last week.
It marks Zii Jia's sixth quarter-final appearance this year out of 19 World Tour starts.
"I haven't reached many quarter-finals this year, even exiting early last week, so I'm determined to go as far as I can this week," said Zii Jia, the winner of the Arctic Open in Finland last month.
"Given that this is the last tournament of the year, I'm just trying to savour every moment."
Reflecting on his dominant performance against Guang Zu, whom he had defeated for the second time this year (the first being at the Malaysia Masters in May), Zii Jia attributed his success to playing patiently on the court.
"Adopting a patient strategy worked really well for me. By staying calm, things fell into my favour.
"Additionally, Lu (Guang Zu) was making unforced errors, providing an added advantage."
With a clear path to the final, Zii Jia gears up for his next challenge against Kenta Nishimoto of Japan.
Nishimoto secured his spot after a surprising 21-15, 21-23, 21-10 victory over Thai ace Kunlavut Vitidsarn, who has struggled to find form since being crowned the world champion in August.
Given Zii Jia's superior 6-2 head-to-head record against Nishimoto, he undoubtedly feels optimistic about his chances.
Should Zii Jia advance further, he will face either home favourite Zhao Jun Peng or Lin Chun Yi of Taiwan, the latter having eliminated Anthony Ginting of Indonesia.
