S. Korea unlikely to beat Indonesia in Thomas Cup<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia is the odds-on favorite against dark-
\nhorse South Korea in this evening's semifinal at Senayan indoor
\nstadium.<\/p>\n
In fact the host nation, with six of the world's top 10
\nsingles players, looks firmly on course to lift the cup for the
\nfirst time in a decade.<\/p>\n
Indonesia has won the Thomas Cup a record eight times before,
\nthe last in 1984 when it edged China 3-2 in the final, avenging a
\n5-4 defeat by the Chinese in the 1982 final.<\/p>\n
\"The Thomas Cup is very important to me and the team. I really
\nwant to win this for Indonesia and for all our fans,\" said Joko
\nSuprianto, Indonesia's first singles player and world number one.<\/p>\n
South Korea, which made the semi-finals at the expense of more
\nfavored Denmark, readily admitted that it faces an uphill task
\nagainst the seemingly invincible Indonesians.<\/p>\n
A South Korean official put on a brave face when he told a
\npress conference yesterday that his team \"would do its best.\"<\/p>\n
\"It will take a herculean effort for us to beat Indonesia in
\nthe lion's den. We knew all along that the odds are heavily
\nstacked against us, and we are not given even a ghost of a chance
\nto pull off an upset. But we will not throw in the towel as we
\nwill fight it out and do our best,\" said Han Sung-gei,
\ninternational affairs official for the South Korean badminton
\nfederation, who represented team manager Kim Joong-soo at the
\npress conference.<\/p>\n
He added, however, that his team might have a chance \"if our
\nfirst singles player Kim Hak-yun beats Joko.\" Han said Kim has
\nthoroughly studied Joko's style by video.<\/p>\n
That possibility seems very remote, given the wide gap in
\nworld rankings between the two players, but Han said: \"Everything
\ncan happen in a team event.\"<\/p>\n
South Korea suffered a 5-0 defeat at the hands of the Alan
\nBudikusuma-led Indonesian team in the semifinals at the 1992
\nchampionships in Kuala Lumpur. Indonesia went on to reach the
\nfinal, only to be beaten 3-2 by the fired up and highly motivated
\nMalaysian team in the final.<\/p>\n
Kim upset top seed Joko in last January's Korean Open,
\neventually won by Indonesia's Ardy Wiranata defeating teammate
\nHariyanto Arbi.<\/p>\n
Joko, Hariyanto and Ardy are almost certain to play first,
\nsecond and third singles against South Korea which will most
\nlikely field Kim, Park Sung-woo and Lee Kwan-jin in the singles.<\/p>\n
The manager said he was not sure if his team will use veteran
\ndoubles specialist Kim Moon-soo in the match. \"He always joins
\nthe training sessions, but whether we will field him tomorrow
\nwill much depend on the situation,\" Han said without going into
\ndetails.<\/p>\n
Kim formed a formidable partnership with Park Joo-bong in the
\n1980s, when they won almost every major men's doubles title,
\nculminating in the duo's gold-medal victory at the 1992 Barcelona
\nOlympics.<\/p>\n
South Korea has benched Kim for the last three matches.<\/p>\n
Han complained that the Indonesian spectators are not very
\npleasant to the foreign players. \"The Indonesian people like
\nbadminton very much, but they only reserve their vociferous
\ncheers for their players. They shower derisive jeers on whoever
\nrivals the Indonesian players,\" he lamented.<\/p>\n
He said badminton spectators in his country cheer any player,
\nregardless of his or her nationality, who performs well. \"They
\nappreciate a good performance no matter who the players are.\"<\/p>\n
Han expressed deep concern that the excessive support given by
\nthe hometown fans to the Indonesian shuttlers might adversely
\naffect the performances of his unexperienced players.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of T-shirted crowds have used trumpets and drums,
\nunfurling banners as means of massive support for both the
\nIndonesian men's and women's squads.<\/p>\n
Optimism<\/p>\n
Indonesian team manager Lutfi Hamid expressed overwhelming
\noptimism that his side would win a ticket for the final. \"We will
\nsweep three points as soon as possible from either the singles or
\ndoubles matches,\" Lutfi said.<\/p>\n
Lutfi hinted that there might be some changes in the singles
\nline-up.\"Anyway we will field our strongest team,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said that Joko was not his usual self when he lost to Kim
\nin the Korean Open. \"But things are different now. We will not
\nonly beat South Korea en-route to the final, but also the
\nchampionship,\" he said.<\/p>\n
While Uber Cup title holder China continued its regular
\ntraining session for today's semifinals, the rival Swedish team
\ntook a break with a trip to the Seribu Islands, a popular
\ndestination for tourists north of here.<\/p>\n
Chinese coach Chen Yie said his squad will take more than
\nthree points to win a place in the final. \"All my players are in
\ntip-top conditions to retain the title,\" he said after a workout
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
China upset old nemesis South Korea 3-2 on Friday to top Group
\nA.<\/p>\n
China won its fifth consecutive Uber Cup title in Kuala Lumpur
\nin 1992 by scoring a 3-2 win over South Korea. China and South
\nKorea have contested the last three Uber Cup finals, with the
\nChinese emerging triumphant each time. (amd\/bas)<\/p>",
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