'Better schedules needed in W. Cup badminton c'ship'

JAKARTA (JP): The Badminton Association of Indonesia expects organizers to arrange better match schedules for the 1996 Sanyo World Cup Badminton Championships that is to be held from Dec. 11 to Dec. 15 at Senayan's indoor stadium.

Sumaryono, the association's executive director, told a press conference yesterday that the organizers should learn from last year, when some of the matches ended close to 2:00 a.m.

"Some players, including Ricky (Subagja) and Rexy (Mainaky), had to play after midnight. Lack of sleep left them feeling unwell the following mornings.

"Better schedules will also allow the public to enjoy the matches," he said.

The US$190,000 tournament is being held for the 15th time. The world's top 16 men's singles and 12 women's singles players will be invited, as will eight men's doubles, six women's doubles and six mixed doubles teams, based on rankings issued by the International Badminton Federation (IBF) in November.

All of Indonesia's leading players are expected to qualify for the World Cup, the season-ending tournament which take place just three days after the December Grand Prix Finals in Denpasar, Bali.

Ricky and Rexy, who grabbed Indonesia's lone Olympic gold medal in Atlanta last month, vowed to seal the season unbeaten by retaining their Grand Prix Finals and World Cup titles.

"I think we are prepared enough for both the Grand Prix Finals and for the World Cup," Ricky said.

Defending champions Ricky and Rexy opted out of the U.S. Open, now underway in California, after playing in the just concluded 14th National Games.

Indonesia won four titles in the men's singles, women's doubles, men's doubles and mixed doubles. China's Ye Zhaoying put an end to Indonesia's supremacy by beating Susi Susanti for the women's singles crown.

New ruling

Rudy Hartono, an IBF executive, said that for the World Cup, the world badminton body may apply a new match regulation that will allow coaches to go on court after the first set for one and a half minutes to give instructions to their players.

"However, it is not certain yet," said Rudy, who won the All- England crown for a record eight times from late 1960s to early 1970s.

Meanwhile, Sumaryono said that exhaustion was the reason that some of Indonesia's big names are missing from the U.S. Open in Orange County, California.

Men's singles top seed Joko Suprianto and his women's singles counterpart Mia Audina scored crushing victories to lead a pack of Indonesians safely to the U.S. Open quarterfinals on Wednesday.

World number two Joko beat Russian number one player Andrej Antropov 15-3, 15-7, while Mia drubbed I-Lun Wu of Taiwan 11-2, 11-0.

Indonesian players top the U.S. Open's seeding list in all five divisions. (yan)