Markham: Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia continued his Canada Open campaign in confident fashion, defeating Chinese Taipei’s Liao Jhuo-Fu in straight games to reach the men’s singles quarterfinals.
Lee, who advanced from the first round after India’s fourth seed Kidambi Srikanth retired while trailing 10-11, made better use of his second-round opportunity at the Markham Pan Am Centre. The Malaysian controlled the pace against Liao and won 21-11, 21-13.
The result sends Lee into a quarterfinal meeting with Chinese Taipei’s sixth seed Wang Po-Wei. Wang booked his place in the last eight with a dominant 21-5, 21-13 win over Denmark’s Ditlev Jaeger Holm.
For Lee, the win over Liao is a useful step forward after a difficult stretch on the BWF World Tour. He looked sharper, steadier, and more composed than in recent tournaments, and he will now have a bigger test against Wang Po-Wei, who has yet to drop a game in the section shown.
Men’s Singles: Lee Zii Jia to Face Wang Po-Wei
In the men’s singles second round, Wang Po-Wei of Chinese Taipei, seeded sixth, defeated Denmark’s Ditlev Jaeger Holm 21-5, 21-13.
Lee Zii Jia then followed with a 21-11, 21-13 victory over Liao Jhuo-Fu, setting up a quarterfinal between Wang and Lee.
- Wang Po-Wei (6), Chinese Taipei, defeated Ditlev Jaeger Holm, Denmark, 21-5, 21-13
- Lee Zii Jia, Malaysia, defeated Liao Jhuo-Fu, Chinese Taipei, 21-11, 21-13
- Next round: Wang Po-Wei (6) vs Lee Zii Jia
Victor Lai Begins Second-Round Campaign Late Thursday
Canada’s top seed Victor Lai is also scheduled for second-round action late Thursday, carrying strong home interest in the men’s singles draw.
Lai will face Finland’s Kalle Koljonen, with the match listed for July 2 on Court 1, Match 8, followed by an estimated start time of 6:10 p.m.
The winner of that match will move toward a possible quarterfinal against either Chinese Taipei’s Wang Yu-Kai or England’s Harry Huang. Wang and Huang are scheduled on Court 1, Match 10, with an estimated start time of 7:50 p.m., subject to change.
- Victor Lai (1), Canada, vs Kalle Koljonen, Finland
- Wang Yu-Kai, Chinese Taipei, vs Harry Huang, England
Beiwen Zhang Battles Past Aakarshi Kashyap
In women’s singles, United States fourth seed Beiwen Zhang survived a tough three-game battle against India’s Aakarshi Kashyap.
Aakarshi took the opening game 22-20, but Beiwen responded with better control in the next two games, winning 20-22, 21-17, 21-17 to reach the next round.
Beiwen will next face Denmark’s sixth seed Amalie Schulz, who defeated United States player Ella Lin 21-18, 14-21, 21-14 in another three-game contest.
- Amalie Schulz (6), Denmark, defeated Ella Lin, United States, 21-18, 14-21, 21-14
- Beiwen Zhang (4), United States, defeated Aakarshi Kashyap, India, 20-22, 21-17, 21-17
- Next round: Amalie Schulz (6) vs Beiwen Zhang (4)
Presley Smith-Jennie Gai Advance in Mixed Doubles
In mixed doubles, United States top seeds Presley Smith and Jennie Gai came through a difficult second-round match against Brazil’s Davi Silva and Sania Lima.
The American pair won 21-14, 21-23, 21-12, recovering well after dropping a tight second game. Their next opponents will be England’s Samuel Jones and Lizzie Tolman.
Jones and Tolman defeated Spain’s sixth seeds Ruben Garcia and Lucia Rodriguez 21-14, 21-15 to move into the next round.
- Presley Smith / Jennie Gai (1), United States, defeated Davi Silva / Sania Lima, Brazil, 21-14, 21-23, 21-12
- Samuel Jones / Lizzie Tolman, England, defeated Ruben Garcia / Lucia Rodriguez (6), Spain, 21-14, 21-15
- Next round: Presley Smith / Jennie Gai (1) vs Samuel Jones / Lizzie Tolman
Mixed Doubles Bottom Half: Dunn-MacPherson and Kolding-Werge Move On
In the bottom half of the mixed doubles draw, Scotland’s fifth seeds Alexander Dunn and Julie MacPherson advanced with a comfortable 21-7, 21-12 win over Canada’s Zachary Desjardins and Simone Huang.
They will next face Denmark’s Kristoffer Kolding and Mette Werge, who produced one of the more notable results of the round by beating England’s second seeds Callum Hemming and Estelle van Leeuwen 21-18, 15-21, 21-18.
- Alexander Dunn / Julie MacPherson (5), Scotland, defeated Zachary Desjardins / Simone Huang, Canada, 21-7, 21-12
- Kristoffer Kolding / Mette Werge, Denmark, defeated Callum Hemming / Estelle van Leeuwen (2), England, 21-18, 15-21, 21-18
- Next round: Alexander Dunn / Julie MacPherson (5) vs Kristoffer Kolding / Mette Werge
Canada Open Builds Momentum in Markham
The Canada Open is beginning to take shape across singles and mixed doubles, with Lee Zii Jia’s quarterfinal run giving Malaysian badminton fans something to follow closely.
Lee’s next match against Wang Po-Wei will be an important test of whether he can turn this week into a deeper run. Meanwhile, home fans will be watching Victor Lai’s late Thursday match against Kalle Koljonen, hoping the Canadian top seed can continue his own push toward the title.
In women’s singles, Beiwen Zhang’s comeback win over Aakarshi Kashyap adds another strong badminton news storyline, while mixed doubles continues to produce competitive results and several promising quarterfinal matchups.
