The race for a final berth intensified as two Malaysian representatives went head-to-head with their Danish opponents in the semi-finals.

In men’s singles, Lee Zii Jia conceded the opening game 11-21 to fourth seed Anders Antonsen before staging a comeback to claim the second 21-15 and force a decider.

However, Zii Jia’s hopes of repeating his 2023 triumph were dashed as he fell 16-21 in the deciding game to the Danish shuttler, leaving him trailing 5-6 in their head-to-head record.

Meanwhile, debutants Aaron Tai-Yap Roy King celebrated a landmark achievement by reaching their first BWF World Tour tournament final, overcoming Denmark’s Christian Faust Kjær-Rasmus Kjær in straight games, 21-14, 21-16.

They needed just 37 minutes to seal the victory over the World No. 32 Danish pair.

Aaron-King will face Chinese Taipei’s Lai Po Yu-Tsai Fu Cheng in the final showdown.