Archer/Goode try to regain England's glorious moment

JAKARTA (JP): Britons Simon Archer and Joanne Goode successfully reclaimed England's reputation in mixed doubles ten years after Martin Dew and Gillian Gilk won the title at the Indonesia Open in Samarinda, East Kalimantan.

"This is our fourth title after the 1998 Commonwealth Games, the 1999 All England, which is the greatest title, followed by the Swiss Open a week later. And this is the only event we won in Asia and it is so special for us," Archer said at a news conference. "This is really important as Joanne suffered a back injury last year."

Goode, who was born in Harlow, England, on Nov. 17, 1972, said: "This is our first title after I was laid up with an injury from November last year to March. It gave us more confidence so we could go further for the Olympic Games in Sydney in September."

Their success is an awakening for England's badminton achievement, especially after the country dominated mixed doubles in the 1970s. However, since the 1990s the domination has switched to Asian countries, including China, South Korea and Indonesia.

"It's quite difficult in England because we don't have a training camp and everybody is practicing on their own. But now the system is starting to change," Goode said.

Since they paired up in 1998, Archer and Goode did not require a long time for the world to take notice of their performances. The combination of Archer's hot temper and Goode's coolheaded style is like fire and ice. Archer's sharp smashes and Goode's neat netting often trouble their opponents.

Their milestone was the 1999 All England, where they beat all the best pairs in the world.

"There's no pair in the world who we fear. Not any more. Besides Kim Dong-moon and Ra Kyung-min, who are very strong, we are trying to recapture the moment when people didn't want to play them," said Archer, who was born in Leamington Spa, England, on June 27, 1973.

Both players said the absence of Chinese and Korean top pairs gave them the advantage to win the title but they still needed to work hard to eliminate three of the world's top five doubles of Jens Eriksen and Mette Schjoldager of Denmark in the quarterfinals, Tri Kusharyanto and Minarti Timur of Indonesia in the semifinals and Michael Sogaard and Rikke Olsen of Denmark in the finals.

Goode, who is a mother of one son, said it was difficult for her to arrange her schedule, especially during tournaments abroad.

"I only have time with my son in the morning, evening and weekends. But my husband is very understanding with the situation. I only took my son to the All England because it was the closest to home," she said with a laugh. (yan)