China retains Uber Cup with 3-1 win

Novan Iman Santosa The Jakarta Post Guangzhou, China

Host and defending champion China maintained its domination in women's badminton after downing arch rival South Korea 3-1 to retain the Uber Cup on Saturday at the Tianhe Sports Center.

The win, a record eighth title, served as a consolation for the Chinese who failed to reach the final of the men's team in the Thomas Cup competition after being beaten 1-3 by Malaysia on Thursday.

In another development, one of Indonesia's former badminton greats in the 1980s Liem Swie King was inducted into the Badminton Hall of Fame at the International Badminton Federation (IBF) Council meeting, along with five other badminton personalities,

The meeting also awarded Barcelona 1992 Olympics gold medalist Susi Susanti with the Herbert Scheele Trophy for her exceptional services to badminton.

It was South Korea which grabbed the first rubber in the match on Saturday when first singles Kim Kyeung-ran defeated Zhou Mi 7- 2, 7-4, 3-7, 3-7, 7-5 over 64 minutes.

Although Kim won the first two games, she failed to make a straight set as Zhou displayed her outstanding resilience.

Kim then took a commanding 5-2 lead in the deciding fifth game, but lack of composure allowed Zhou to level the tie at 5-5 before Kim finished it 7-5.

Chinese first doubles team of Gao Ling and Huang Sui made it 1-1 after defeating Ra Kyung-min and Lee Kyung-won 7-4, 2-7, 7-1, 5-7, 7-1 in the second match.

The Chinese duo could have finished the match at the fourth game as they had gone 5-2 ahead.

"We lost the fourth game because we lost our concentration. The South Korean pair has good defense," said Gao.

Second singles Gong Ruina further extended China's lead 2-1 when she won the third match against Kwon Hee-sook 7-3, 7-4, 5-7, 7-3 in a match completely dominated by the Chinese.

The second doubles team of Yang Wei and Huang Nanyan gave China the win after they outclassed Lee Hyo-jung and Hwang Yu-mi 7-0, 7-2, 7-3.

Indonesia is set to face Malaysia at the men's Thomas Cup final on Sunday afternoon. The final will be broadcast live by private television station Trans TV starting from 12:30 a.m. Jakarta time.

It will be the eighth final encounter between the two badminton powerhouses, with Indonesia leading by five. The two teams last met in the 1998 final in Hong Kong, which was won by Indonesia.

Indonesia is now seeking a record fifth win in a row. But the mental burden will give underdog Malaysia the advantage.

"The shuttlers are in such high spirits after defeating favorite China in the semifinals," coach Indra Gunawan, who guided Indonesia to four straight Thomas Cup wins between 1994 and 2000, told reporters.

"It will be a heated match for Indonesia in the final. Those who can press the opponent early in the match will get the upper hand," he added.

On the other hand, Indonesian shuttlers still have to improve their performance especially in the opening games.

"I must admit that I am a slow starter. But I have identified my weaknesses and I still have time to fix my game," said Taufik Hidayat, who clinched the final place for Indonesia.

"Now there is only one step away from victory. We want to seal a win," he added, while admitting that the Malaysians were playing extremely well against the Chinese.