Taipei Open: Reginald Lee back to winning ways after battling through men’s and mixed doubles first round
- The 28-year-old was once part of Hong Kong’s top pairing but injury and the pandemic forced him to start over from scratch
- Three Hong Kong mixed doubles pairs make it through opening round on Wednesday at US$500,000 tournament
Hong Kong’s Reginald Lee Chun-hei got back to winning ways on Wednesday after making it through both the mixed and men’s doubles opening rounds at the Taipei Open.
In the men’s doubles, Lee joined up with Law Cheuk-him to overcome Krishna Prasad Garaga and Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala of India, beating the seventh seeds in three games, 21-23, 21-18, 21-14.
He also made it to the mixed doubles second round with partner Ng Tsz-yau following a 2-0 win (21-13, 21-16) over Taiwan’s Sung Shuo-Yun and Lee Fang-Jen.
Now 28, Lee was once part of Hong Kong’s most successful mixed doubles pair with the retired Cathy Chau Hoi-wah, setting several benchmarks on the international stage.
They were crowned the Asian champion in 2014, qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and lifted a bronze medal at the World Championships the following year.
But following Chou’s decision to retire and return to Canada after a serious shoulder injury, Lee’s career ground to a halt until late 2019 when he returned to the tour.