No Indonesian shuttlers left in Swiss Open
No Indonesian shuttlers left in Swiss Open
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia has suffered another humiliating
defeat, with none of its players reaching the final round of
another Grand Prix series tournament, this time the Swiss Open.
China, on the other hand, continues to go from strength to
strength: the finals in the event's men's singles, women's
singles and women's doubles are to be contested solely by Chinese
shuttlers.
Indonesia's sole hope in the men's singles, Hendrawan, failed
to take revenge against Chinese Xia Xuanze, who won the All
England title last week, in the semifinals of the four-star
competition in Basel, Switzerland, on Saturday.
Eighth seed Hendrawan, whose last major achievement was
runner-up in the 1998 Asian Games, managed to overcome Xia, who
defeated him in the All England quarterfinals. Unfortunately, the
Indonesian, who only recovered from typhoid late last month,
failed to fulfill his ambition and had to bow out 11-15, 15-8,
11-15 in one hour and five minutes to Xia.
Xia, sixth seeded here, will face compatriot Ji Xinpeng, fifth
seeded in the tournament, in Sunday's final. Ji earned a
comfortable win thanks to Kenneth Jonassen of Denmark, who
retired after losing 10-15 in the first game. World Badminton did
not report on the cause of his retirement.
In the men's doubles, Indonesians Flandy Limpele and Eng Hian
suffered a humiliating defeat against top seeds Kim Dong-moon and
Ha Tae-kwon of South Korea 5-15, 1-15, in just 36 minutes.
Kim and Ha will face the Danish pair of Jens Eriksen and
Jesper Larsen. Fourth seeds Eriksen and Larsen managed to upset
second seeds Lee Dong-soo and Yoo Yong-sung of South Korea 15-9,
10-15, 15-12, in one hour and 27 minutes.
Top seed Dai Yun is closer to fulfilling her ambition of
winning the tournament after she eliminated teammate Han Jingna
11-1, 11-3, in only 15 minutes.
However, Dai will face compatriot Gong Ruina, second seeded
here, in Sunday's final. Gong also earned an easy win over South
Korean Lee Kyung-won 11-4, 11-2 in only 22 minutes.
The women's doubles final will also see a battle between
Chinese duos. Third seeds Qin Yiyuan and Gao Ling surprisingly
upset top seeds Ra Kyung-min and Chung Jae-hee of South Korea 15-
8, 15-13. Qin and Gao will face unseeded teammates Huang Nanyan
and Yang Wei, who upset the third seeds Yim Kyung-jin and Lee
Hyo-jung of South Korea 15-10, 15-11.
In the mixed doubles, top seed Kim Dong-moon and Ra Kyung-min
of South Korea easily defeated Jens Eriksen and Mette Schjoldager
of Denmark 15-4, 15-3. The Koreans will face fifth seeds Zhang
Jun and Gao Ling of China. The Chinese tamed little-known
Khunakorn Sudhisodhi and Saralee Thuntongkham of Thailand 15-9,
15-12. (yan)