Joko stretched in season-opener at Japan Open

Joko stretched in season-opener at Japan Open

TOKYO (AFP): Former world badminton champion Joko Suprianto faced a spirited challenge from Japan's Shuichi Nakao in the first round of the season-opener Japan Open yesterday.

Indonesia's 1993 world champion, whose former number one ranking has plummeted to 24th this week, was stretched to a three-point tiebreak in the first game before scoring a 17-14, 15-11 victory in 49 minutes.

Unseeded Joko, the Japan Open champion here two years ago, is seeking his first title since winning the U.S. Open in September 1996.

The three-event Asian tour -- the Taipei, Japan and Korean Opens -- became a single event this season after the Seoul event was scrapped due to the country's financial problems, while the Taipei Open was merged with the Indian Open to be held in November at the request of the International Badminton Federation.

Joint ninth seed Fung Permadi, Joko's former teammate who now represents Taiwan, became the first seeded player to fall on the first day of the US$200,000 tournament.

The 1996 Grand Prix Final winner bowed to Roslin Hashim of Malaysia 5-15, 11-15 after failing to keep a 4-1 lead in the first and a wide 11-4 lead in the second game.

Other ninth seeds coasted to straightforward victories except Jeroen van Dijk of the Netherlands, who needed 59 minutes to dispose of Japan's Hidetaka Yamada 15-8, 12-15, 15-6.

China's Chen Gang and Luo Yigang, Malaysia's Ong Ewe Hock and Yong Hock Kin, and Indonesia's Indra Wijaya and Budi Santoso were other ninth seeds to join Dijk into the second round.

Top seeds, led by current world number one Peter Gade Christensen of Denmark, all-England champion Dong Jiong of China and Olympic champion Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen of Denmark, will make their first appearances today.

Women's world champion Ye Zhaoying of China and defending champion Mia Audina of Indonesia also received first-round byes with six other seeds.

Results

Men's singles first round: Wong Ewee Mun (Mas) bt Kusamao Suzuki (Jpn) 15-5, 15-5 Chen Gang (Chn) bt Akihiro Kishida (Jpn) 15-2, 15-12 Rikard Magnusson (Swe) bt Yosuke Nakanishi (Jpn) 15-7, 15-9 Pulella Gopichand (Ind) bt Fumihiko M. (Jpn) 5-15, 15-6, 15-11 Ong Ewe Hock (Mas) bt Takaaki Taniuchi (Jpn) 15-2, 15-7 Naoshige Kataoka (Jpn) bt Feng Homg-yun (Tpe) 13-15, 15-6, 15-9 Keita Masuda (Jpn) bt Kim Hyung-Joon (Kor) 15-7, 15-9 Roslin Hashim (Mas) bt Fung Permadi (Tpe) 15-5, 15-11 Joko Suprianto (Ina) bt Shuichi Nakao (Jpn) 17-14, 15-11 Ryo Nihei (Jpn) bt Liu Kwok-wa (Hkg) 15-6, 9-15, 15-10 Jeroen van Dijk (Ned) bt Hidetaka Yamada (Jpn) 15-8, 12-15, 15-6 Ji Xinpeng (Chn) bt Wong Jason (Mas) 15-8, 15-4 Ismail Saman (Mas) bt Shuichi Sakamoto (Jpn) 15-5, 15-10 Luo Yigang (Chn) bt Shinji Ota (Jpn) 15-4, 15-12 Huang Yeu-der (Tpe) bt Kimihiko Kobuki (Jpn) 15-12, 15-9 Hideki Yamada (Jpn) bt Yau Kwun-yuen (Hkg) 15-4, 15-11 Yong Hock Kin (Mas x9) bt Chang Jeng-shyuang (Tpe) 15-5, 15-2 Chen Wei (Chn) bt Kazuhiro Shimogami (Jpn) 15-6, 15-2 Tadashi Otsuka (Jpn) Wong Choong Hann (Mas) 15-6, 15-5 Indra Wijaya (Ina) bt Hideyuki Munesue (Jpn) 15-7, 15-5 Liu En-horng (Tpe) Keishi Kawaguchi (Jpn) 15-5, 15-1 Tam Kai-chuen (Hkg) bt Hiroaki Kuruma (Jpn) 15-8, 10-15, 15-1 Budi Santoso (Ina) bt Yim Bang-eun (Kor) 15-10, 15-5 Rashid Sidek (Mas) bt Takahiro Suka (Jpn) 15-7, 15-3

Women's singles first round: Judith Meulenduks (Ned) bt Shizuka Yamamoto (Jpn) 11-5, 12-9 Miho Tanaka (Jpn) bt Gong Ruina (Chn) 11-7, 11-9 Pernille Harder (Den) bt Chen Wanju (Tpe) 9-11, 11-7, 11-5 Huang Chia-chi (Tpe) bt Kim Kyung-ran (Kor) 11-6, 11-6 Cindana (Ina) bt Yasuko Mizui (Jpn) 4-11, 11-3, 11-3 Hiroko Nagamine (Jpn) bt Kelly Morgan (Wal) walkover Kyoko Komuro (Jpn) bt Zarinah Abdullah (Sin) 11-6, 5-11, 11-5 Brenda Beenhakker (Ned) bt Keiko Takeno (Jpn) 8-11, 11-3, 11-7 Ng Ching (Hkg) bt Rie Ichihashi (Jpn) 11-5, 11-5 Lee Kyung-won (Kor) bt Chan Ya-lin (Tpe) 4-11, 11-7, 11-4 Kanako Yonekura (Jpn) bt Mette Sorensen (Den) 11-12, 11-7, 11-3 Julia Mann (Gbr) bt Satomi Igawa (Jpn) 11-5, 11-3 Hang Jingna (Chn) bt Chikako Nakayama (Jpn) 11-3, 12-11 Lidya Djaelawijaya (Ina) bt Jeng Shwu-zen (Tpe) 7-11, 11-3, 11-6