Taufik brings home Asian trophy<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Taufik Hidayat beat fellow Indonesian and reigning champion
\nSony Dwi Kuncoro to win the Asian badminton trophy on Sunday in
\nthe finals in Kuala Lumpur.<\/p>\n
Taufik extended the bout to three sets before stopping two-
\ntime Asian champion Sony 15-12, 7-15, 15-6, according to the
\ntournament's website.<\/p>\n
Indonesia brought home another trophy from the men's doubles,
\nin which Sigit Budiarto and Tri Kusharjanto defeated Candra
\nWijaya and Halim Haryanto 15-3, 15-5 in the other all-Indonesian
\nfinal.<\/p>\n
Taufik's victory ended his losing streak against his younger
\nteammate Sony, who prevailed against him in the past two finals
\n-- in Bangkok in 2002 and Jakarta in 2003.<\/p>\n
On Sunday, after leveling at one set apiece, Sony, ranked 13th
\nin the world, was unable to take control in the third game and
\nmade a string of errors by hitting the shuttle out.<\/p>\n
Taufik, with his powerful leaping smashes, pressured Sony in
\nevery area to round up the battle to his victory.<\/p>\n
While dominating in the men's events, Indonesia saw poor
\nperformances elsewhere, with its women's players falling to the
\nwayside.<\/p>\n
In the mixed doubles, Nova Widiyanto and Vita Marissa failed
\nto continue their winning form that earned them a title in Japan
\nlast week. They reached the semifinals only to lose out to
\neventual champions Ha Tae-kwon and Ra Kyung-min of South Korea.<\/p>\n
It was Indonesia's latest defeat in their six meetings with
\nthe world champions.<\/p>\n
Ha and Ra beat Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thungthungkam of
\nThailand 15-10, 17-14 in Sunday's final.<\/p>\n
Jun Yae-youn gave the Korean team another title with a 11-9,
\n11-7 victory over Wang Chen of Hong Kong in the women's singles.<\/p>\n
With two titles in the men's singles and doubles, Indonesia
\nshould be confident about entering the upcoming Thomas Cup, to be
\nheld here from May 7 to May 16, and its prospect of winning the
\ncup for the sixth consecutive time.<\/p>",
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