Lee Injured, Antonsen Advances To BWF World Championship Semifinals

JAKARTA - The men's singles badminton player from Denmark, Anders Antonsen, has qualified for the semifinals of the 2021 BWF World Championships after his opponent, Lee Zii Jia, suffered an injury and withdrew during the match into the third game, Friday.

The meeting which took place in Huelva, Spain, had to end with a score of 12-21, 21-8, 11-1 and lasted for 48 minutes, according to the BWF report on its official website.

World number three Antonsen started his match in the last eight by accepting pressure from his opponent. Lee from the beginning tried to dictate to Antonsen by providing difficult passes.

The two players went through a long rally, but Lee, who was more patient, was able to maintain consistency in his game and his advantage until the first game was over.

A drastic change occurred in Lee's action in the second game when the score was 3-4 with the advantage for Antonsen. At this point, Lee, who was initially agile and able to reach far strokes, became slower and had difficulty dispelling shots that were actually easy.

Antonsen repeatedly scored consecutive points like seven times (11-4), five times (18-7), and the last three times (21-8). The acquisition of Antonsen's score forced the game of determination to be played.

Lee's condition became increasingly unfavorable for his position in the third game, because it was clear that the seventh-ranked badminton player was having a hard time moving and letting the balls from Antonsen's rally enter the field.

After nine minutes of running in the third game, Lee also asked the medical team for help at intervals to check his condition.

Finally Lee also met the referee and proposed to withdraw from the match and provide a way for Antonsen to swing into the last four. Until now there has been no official statement from the BWF regarding Lee's injury.

In the semifinals, the only Danish representative in the men's singles number is still waiting for a potential opponent between Loh Kean Yew (Singapore) and Prannoy HS (India).