SINGAPORE – The ninth instalment of badminton’s Causeway derby between two of the game’s hottest rising stars ended in disappointment for Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew, as he lost 21-18, 21-15 to Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia in their Denmark Open semi-final on Saturday.
World No. 3 Lee will meet China’s 44th-ranked Shi Yuqi, who defeated Japan’s 24th-ranked Kodai Naraoka 21-15, 9-21, 24-22 in the other semi-final.
World No. 5 Loh, on the other hand, will have to be content with a cheque for US$10,500 (S$14,900).
Loh later thanked his supporters “who stayed up late to catch the action” and those in the Jyske Bank Arena and wrote on Instagram: “It almost feels like home playing here at Denmark Open with a very warm and welcoming crowd... Training and competing in Denmark has been a fruitful experience.”
Kedah-born Lee is friends with Loh, who was born in Penang and is a year older at 25. The duo are also seasoned rivals, often facing off in junior tournaments before the latter moved to Singapore when he was 13.
Both have since done well in their professional careers, with Loh claiming an historic crown at the 2021 World Championships and Lee snagging the 2021 All England Open and 2022 Asia Championships on their way to their career-high world rankings now.
A week before this event, both had trained with Denmark’s world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen in his home country before Loh knocked out the Olympic and world champion in the quarter-finals to set up a tantalising tie between two of the circuit’s most explosive players.
Long rallies were at a premium and, with the shuttlecocks playing “super fast” at this tournament, shuttle control was key and it looked like Loh settled down faster to establish a 7-2 lead in the first game.
But Lee came back swiftly with superb net play to make it 12-12. The turning point came two points later when the umpire ruled that Loh’s racket had crossed the net and, instead of 13-13, Lee led 14-12 and went on to see out the opener.
The second game followed a similar vein, with Loh leading 3-0 early on and Lee rebounding to build a 13-8 advantage. Fighting for his life, Loh drew level at 14-14 but eventually ran out of steam with several unforced errors.
Lee is unbeaten against Loh this year, with three victories, to extend his head-to-head advantage to 7-2 as Loh now turns his attention to the Oct 25-30 French Open.
“It’s a breakthrough result for me. In the last two tournaments, I didn’t perform well and I’m still trying to find my confidence here,” said Lee.
“Today, I stayed calm and patient. I also tried to reduce his attacking shots because, as you know, Kean Yew has a very powerful smash.”
