Malaysia’s top men’s singles star Lee Zii Jia successfully booked his place in the main draw of the Toyota Thailand Open 2026 after producing two convincing victories in the qualifying rounds on Tuesday.
Competing in the HSBC BWF World Tour Super 500 event, Lee displayed composure and sharp attacking play throughout the day at the qualifying stage.
The former All England champion began his campaign with a straight-games victory over India’s Manav Choudhary, winning 21-19, 21-18 in the opening qualifying round. Lee then continued his momentum in Qualifying Round 2 by defeating Taiwan’s Liao Jhuo-Fu 21-16, 21-13 to officially seal his spot in the main tournament.
The strong performance signals encouraging progress for the Malaysian ace as he looks to rebuild consistency on the international circuit in 2026.
Another Malaysian representative, Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin, also showed tremendous fighting spirit during the qualifying stages.
Aidil battled back from a game down to overcome Taiwan’s Ting Yen-Chen 13-21, 21-16, 21-12 in Qualifying Round 1. However, the Malaysian youngster was unable to continue his run after falling to China’s Zhu Xuan Chen 19-21, 14-21 in the second qualifying round.
In the men’s doubles category, Malaysian pair Choong Hon Jian and Wong Vin Sean delivered an impressive comeback victory against Thailand’s Kittinupong Kedren and Lukas E. Wedler.
After dropping the opening game 14-21, the Malaysian duo responded brilliantly to take the next two games 21-12, 21-15 and progress further in the tournament.
Meanwhile, it was a difficult outing for Malaysia’s Lau Yi Sheng and Lim Tze Jian, who were defeated in straight games by China’s formidable pair He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu, losing 10-21, 14-21.
Despite mixed results overall, Malaysia still enjoyed a positive opening day in Bangkok with Lee Zii Jia emerging as the standout performer after successfully navigating the tough qualifying rounds.
Credit Photo : Tuatueng Badminton
