Ill wind blows for players in junior badminton tourney

Moch N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar

Players in the Milo Junior Indonesia Open here are finding their opponents to be only part of the problems they face on court.

A strong draft in one of the stadiums used for the tournament is also playing havoc with their games.

Nearly all the top seeds in girls' singles advanced to the second round on Tuesday's opening day, but 5/8th seed Yvone Sie of the Netherlands, whose parents are Indonesian-born Dutch citizens, was thrashed 2-11, 1-11 by Djarum Kudus player Azizah Ria Nur.

Second seed Tai Yi of China was also given a scare by Malaysia's Tee Jing Yi before winning 11-3, 5-11, 11-2, with the draft contributing to her numerous unforced errors in the second game.

Lisa Malaiholo, another Dutch player with an Indonesian father, said the draft made it difficult for her to judge the flight of the shuttlecock in Tembau Sports Hall.

"The wind is very strong and it was very lucky that I won," she said after sneaking by local hopeful Purwaningsih 11-3, 6-11, 11-7.

Chief referee Julius Tetelepta admitted the wind was strong at the Tembau venue, saying he had received no similar complaints about Ngurah Rai Sports Hall, where all-Indonesian contests are being played.

"You can see here that the wind blows strongly through the open door. We tried to put up barriers of planks and banners but it didn't work. It's to be expected that the players would complain about it," he said.

Top seed Wang Yihan of China was untroubled by the draft, romping to a 11-5, 11-1 victory over Sri Lankan Dinusha J.P. Kasadogure.

Indonesian 3/4 seed Belaetrix Manuputty of Jaya Raya club won 11-9, 11-4 over unseeded compatriot Rhany Christina Sanusi of Djarum Kudus, while Sylvina Kurniawan, also seeded 3/4, received a walkover from fellow local player Pranita S. Devi.

Pia Zebadiah of Jaya Raya, also seeded 5/8, advanced to the second round with a 11-6, 11-3 win over unseeded compatriot Cisita Jansen.

In boys' singles, top seed Lu Qicheng of China, second seed Fauzi Adnan of Indonesia, 3/4 seed Zairul Hafiz Zainuddin of Malaysia, 3/4 seed Chen Tianyu of China and 5/8 seed Achmad Rivai of Indonesia will play on Wednesday in Tembau Sport Hall.

Apart from the host, 11 countries are represented in the event: the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Syria and Iran.