Sydney: Malaysia’s World No. 8 Lee Zii Jia required 64 minutes to secure his place in the second round of the 2024 Australian Open on Wednesday.
The tournament’s third seed faced a tough battle before overcoming World No. 77 Indian player S Sankar Muthusamy Subramanian 21-16, 18-21, 21-10 in a match that lasted over an hour at Sydney Olympic Park.
Highlights of Lee Zii Jia vs. S Sankar Muthusamy Subramanian in the 2024 Australian Open first round:
The 26-year-old Malaysian player will next face compatriot Soong Joo Ven, who eliminated Canadian challenger Victor Lai 21-16, 21-16 in another first-round match.
The World No. 64 women’s singles player Karupathevan Letshanaa also advanced to the second round after easily defeating local representative Ira Sameer Acharya 21-6, 21-5.
Letshanaa will meet Taiwanese player Pai Yu Po in the second round, who edged out India’s Imad Faroouiq Samiya 23-21, 13-21, 24-22.
Also advancing to the second round were mixed doubles pair Tan Kian Meng/Lai Pei Jing, who defeated the host pair Ephraim Stephen Sam/Dania Nugroho 21-13, 21-13.
The fifth-seeded pair is scheduled to face a tough challenge against another Australian pair Adam Jeffrey/Justine Villegas while another Malaysian mixed doubles pair – Hoo Pang Ron/Cheng Su Yin will take on top-seeded Jiang Zheng Bang/Wei Ya Xin of China next.
