Firdasari leads RI singles sweep
\n
\nMusthofid
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nYogyakarta<\/p>\n
Indonesian junior shuttlers made amends for their seniors'
\ndisappointing performance at the international level as they
\nswept all the singles titles at the US$11,000 Milo Junior
\nIndonesia Open badminton championships here on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Firdasari dominated the girls' singles final match against Ha
\nJung-eun of South Korea on route to a 11-4, 11-3 win, her second
\nvictory in as many years. Her triumphant run was followed by
\nAlamsyah who emerged the boys' singles champion, to the delight
\nof the over 2,000 home crowd who filled almost all the seats at
\nthe Among Rogo sports hall.<\/p>\n
Firdasari raced to a 9-2 lead thanks to her mastery in
\nmarshaling the aerial battle that outplayed Ha almost throughout
\nthe match. The Korean fell to a nervous showing which saw her
\nball either sail wide or flop onto the net.<\/p>\n
A lapse in Firdasari's defense allowed Ha to move closer at 9-
\n4, only after five service exchanges. The Indonesian wrapped up
\nthe set on each occasion Ha either returned the ball wide or was
\ncaught up in a poor control of the shuttlecock.<\/p>\n
Overhead smashes and cunning net flicks fired Firdasari to a
\nconvincing 6-1 lead in the second set. Ha was apparently unable
\nto steady her footwork while Firdasari maintained her pace to
\nbuild a 9-3 lead before pulling through to seal the victory.<\/p>\n
"She is typically good in aerial battle, that's why I tried
\nnot to lift the ball too high," 17-year-old Firdasari said after
\nthe match which lasted only 25 minutes.<\/p>\n
"I did not expect to win so quickly and easily. This year's
\nwin is just so much more impressive for me because it was a
\nKorean opponent that I beat. Besides, the tournament has more
\nforeign participants than last year," she said.<\/p>\n
Korean team's manager Lee Deu-choon put his protege's dismal
\nrun down to physical lethargy, saying that Ha was too tired
\nhaving to play in three events: singles, doubles and mixed
\ndoubles.<\/p>\n
Ha's mixed doubles campaign with partner Hoon Min-young
\nalready crashed in the semifinals at the hands of Ujang
\nSuherlan\/Heni Budiman.<\/p>\n
But Ha had a consolation win in the girls' doubles final along
\nwith Oh Seul-ki, beating Indonesia's Heni Budiman\/Greysa Polii
\n15-2, 15-13.<\/p>\n
Alamsyah's abrupt and quick shots, which earned him the scalp
\nof three Korean players en route to the final, came to a mean
\ndefense in Hendri at the start of the match. Alamsyah from
\nTangkas Bogasari club also had to endure menacing deep smashes
\nfrom his opponent from Suryanaga Surabaya club to give away the
\nopening set.<\/p>\n
However, in the following game, he somehow switched the
\ntactics by avoiding lavish lame lobs, which could have been the
\nprey of Hendri in the fight for points.<\/p>\n
Alamsyah lifted his game by sweeping quick shots flat to the
\nback and blasting home deep drop shots to grab the upper hand
\nthroughout. He also showed outstanding resilience in defense,
\nduring which he even had to dive for a return.<\/p>\n
"I couldn't spot his weaknesses in the opening set. When I did
\nin the following sets, I reduced the glaring high balls and
\nlowered the drives as often as possible. I opted for short shots
\nmore often instead," Alamsyah said.<\/p>\n
In the mixed doubles final, which was played earlier on the
\nday, M. Rizal\/Greysa Polii defeated Ujang Suherlan\/Heni Budiman
\n15-9, 15-9.<\/p>\n
The boys' doubles final also featured an all-Indonesian match
\nwith Yoga\/Ujang Suherlan coming back from a set down to beat
\nAlroy Tanama Putra\/Rizal 8-15, 15-5, 15-12.<\/p>",
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