Joko, Hariyanto head for Asiad badminton semifinals
Joko, Hariyanto head for Asiad badminton semifinals
HIROSHIMA, Japan (AFP): Top seed Joko Suprianto and fellow- Indonesian Hariyanto Arbi moved towards a showdown for the Asian Games men's badminton title by cruising into the quarter-finals yesterday.
Joko, the 27-year-old world number two, felt so sorry for his hapless second-round Maldives opponent Abdulla Shakeeb that he gifted him half-a-dozen points before running away with a 15-3, 15-3 victory.
"It was a friendly gesture," smiled Joko, who never had to stretch himself in the course of the clash. The left-handed Maldives player twice fell in his desperation to reach Joko's cunningly-placed drop shots.
World champion Joko has a 4-2 career record against reigning All-England title holder Hariyanto, but would not give himself more than an even chance of defeating his compatriot if the seedings hold good all the way to the final.
"It is 50-50," Joko said.
His quarterfinal opponent will be dangerous Chinese number two Lin Liwen, who defeated 32-year-old left-handed Thai veteran Sompol Kookasemkij 15-10, 15-8.
The gallant Kookasemkij played in pain following an injury to his Achilles' tendon, and Lin pulled away from 10-9 in the first game with a succession of winners.
The Thai, considered the best singles player in his country despite his advanced age, was in tearful agony after the match.
Hariyanto gave debutante Hor Bun Leng of Cambodia a 15-6, 15-5 badminton lesson and will meet Korean one Park Sung-woo, who surprisingly beat him in Thomas Cup semifinals last May, in the round of eight.
Park won 15-11, 18-15 against another battling Thai, Chiangta Teeranun.
Men's doubles
Indonesia's top doubles combination of Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky, the world number one pair, also had no trouble at all in crushing Maldivians Shakeeb and Riyaz Hassan 15-2, 15-2.
The country's gamble of pairing Bambang Suprianto and Hermawan Susanto, however, failed to come off when they were trounced by Malaysians Cheah Soon Kit and Soo Beng Kiang in the men's doubles. Cheah and Soo reached the quarter finals with a 15-5, 15-2 win.
Bambang makes a formidable combination with his usual doubles partner Rudy Gunawan, who has been fielded here in the mixed doubles.
Also into the quarterfinals were Chinese number one Dong Jiong, Malaysia's Ong Ewe Hock, Korea's Kim Hak-kyun and Japan's Fumihiko Machida, who all recorded straight-game victories.
Dong downed Taiwan's Chang Jeng Shyuan 15-7, 15-10, Ong brushed aside Japan's Takahiro Suka 15-4, 15-4, Kim was a 15-4, 18-15 winner over Malaysian K. Muralidesan and Machida conquered Tan Sian Peng of Singapore 15-11, 15-2.
Dong, the number four seed, and Ong will battle each other for a place in the last four while the third-seeded Kim will meet Machida.