HYLO Open 2026: Lee Zii Jia Battles Fever to Beat Teh Jia Heng to R16
Zii Jia Wins 21-16, 19-21, 21-17 in 59 Minutes a Day After Hospital Treatment; Mixed Pair Beat Dutch Opponents in Straight Games Before a Tough Round of 16 Draw Against Taiwan’s World No. 9
Lee Zii Jia and Hoo Pang Ron-Lai Pei Jing both reached the second round of the Hylo Open, a Super 500 event in Saarbrücken, Germany, on Wednesday. Cheam June Wei was knocked out in straight games by India’s Kiran George.
Lee Zii Jia beat Singapore’s Teh Jia Heng 21-16, 19-21, 21-17 in 59 minutes at the Saarlandhalle. The Paris 2024 men’s singles bronze medallist, ranked 42nd in the world, took the first game before the world No. 33 forced a decider. Zii Jia then held his nerve in the third. He won 61 of the 115 points played.
The win also settled a score. Teh had won their only previous meeting, at the Swiss Open in March.
Zii Jia was not at full strength. He told Badminton Europe he had a bad fever and was vomiting the day before, and had been to the hospital for treatment. After the match, he summed up his approach: “I just didn’t want to surrender.”
It is an important win for a player who has had a difficult 2026 after a long spell out with injury. It also keeps his momentum going after reaching the Arctic Open semi-finals three weeks ago, where he lost to Anders Antonsen. He was also runner-up at this event in 2021, losing the final to Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew.
Zii Jia faces a stern test in the next round. His opponent is Japan’s world No. 7, Kodai Naraoka.
Hoo Pang Ron and Lai Pei Jing opened their campaign with a 21-13, 21-13 win over the Dutch pair Joep Strooper-Sterre Bang in mixed doubles. They had been through an exhausting few weeks. They were runners-up at the French Open on Sunday after a semi-final run at the Denmark Open the week before.
Pang Ron has been enjoying his time on court since leaving the national team in April. The pair, now ranked 24th in the world, face Taiwan’s world No. 9 pair Yang Po Hsuan-Hu Ling Fang in the Round of 16.
Cheam June Wei, the only other Malaysian in the men’s singles draw, lost 18-21, 17-21 to Kiran George of India. The scores show that both games were close until the Indian pulled clear late.
Malaysia won two of its three matches on Wednesday. It follows Tuesday’s opening day, when Aaron Tai-Yap Roy King and Ong Xin Yee-Carmen Ting advanced and Chia Wei Jie-Teo Ee Yi retired against the second seeds.
The Hylo Open runs from October 27 to November 1 at the Saarlandhall.
Credit Photo: BAT