(New Delhi, Jan 13) The India Open (Super 750) began its first-round matches today, with Paris Olympic bronze medalist Lee Zii Jia facing Denmark’s world No. 27 Rasmus Gemke. Gemke had won all four of their previous meetings, and he extended that dominance again, defeating Lee in three games 21–13, 18–21, 21–18 to send the Malaysian out in the opening round.
Gemke took control in the first game, moving ahead 4–2 before Lee drew level at 4–4 and 5–5. The Dane then pulled away to 7–5 and 9–6, entering the interval with an 11–7 lead. After the break, Gemke stretched the advantage from 12–9 to 15–9 and later to 18–12, before converting at 21–13.
In the second game, Gemke again led early at 5–2 and maintained the edge into the interval at 11–8. Lee mounted a strong comeback from 9–13 down, winning five straight points to go ahead 14–13. The game remained tight to 16–16, before Lee edged clear to 18–16 and closed it out 21–18 to force a decider.
The deciding game was tense throughout. After 6–6, Lee briefly moved ahead, but Gemke responded with a four-point burst to lead 11–8 at the interval. Lee fought back from 11–13 to regain the lead at 14–13, yet Gemke steadied himself and the score stayed locked to 17–17. In the closing moments, Gemke took the key points to win 21–18 and seal the match.
