RI ascends to badminton supremacy

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia, spurred by a raucous partisan crowd of 12,000 that had Senayan indoor stadium bursting at the seams, notched a memorable double by lifting both the Thomas and Uber Cups, badminton's most prestigious team competitions, over the weekend.

The Thomas Cup, which had eluded Indonesia's grasp for the past 10 years, returned to the country for a record ninth time as a supremely confident Indonesian side, which benched world champion Joko Suprianto for strategic reasons, overwhelmed title holder Malaysia 3-0 on Saturday night in the most one-sided final since 1990.

The night before, Susi Susanti and company did the nation proud by denying China a seventh consecutive title with a nail- bitting 3-2 victory, giving Indonesia its first Uber Cup title in 19 years

Saturday's triumph was all the more sweet for the Indonesians as they beat the team that vanquished them in the biennial series 3-2 two years ago in Kuala Lumpur.

The teams have met in six finals since 1958, with Indonesia now holding a 4-2 edge.

Indonesia sprung a surprise by fielding Hariyanto Arbi at first singles instead of world number one Joko in an attempt to unsettle Malaysian ace Rashid Sidek. Hariyanto sported an impressive 7-1 career mark against Rashid.

And the gamble paid off handsomely. Hariyanto, the only loser in Indonesia's 4-1 semifinal victory over South Korea when he inexplicably fell to no-name Park Sung-woo, was in an uncompromising mood on Saturday, easily downing Rashid 15-6, 15- 11.

The Indonesian's searing leaping-smashes landed time and time again, reducing the Malaysian to retrieving most of the shots.

At first doubles, Indonesia's world number one pair of Rudy Gunawan and Bambang Suprianto were extended to three sets before downing Cheah Soon Kit and Soo Beng Kiang 15-10, 6-15, 15-8.

Smelling blood, in the spirit of the Idul Adha holiday, Ardy Wiranata then employed his attacking lobs to take out an obviously-distracted Ong Ewe Hock. With victory in sight, the crowd was at its most unruly, baiting and jeering the Malaysian throughout.

"Indonesia chose the right lineup by sitting Joko," Rudy Hartono, Indonesia's eight-time All-England champion, said.

He said Joko was not playing well enough to tame the talented Rashid. "It's better not to risk fielding a certain player if we are not sure he will win," he said.

Executive Chairman Sumaryono indicated that the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI) would provide cash bonuses to each player and coach. He refused to mention the amount of the bonus, but said: "Each player and coach will receive the same amount."

Fanatics

The honorary referee of the International Badminton Federation (IBF), Roger Johansson, decided to halt Saturday's final after Ardy's win gave Indonesia an insurmountable 3-0 lead.

"The winner was already decided and it would be better to present the Cup when the crowd expected it. I was afraid the situation could have gotten worse with the bottle-throwing or if there was a fire," the Swedish referee said, adding that he did not hear any complaints from the Malaysian team.

A number of unruly Indonesian fans hurled plastic bottles and sticks at Malaysian players and officials in a display of rowdiness that tainted their heroes victory.

Johansson said he made his decision after a brief discussion with meet organizers. "We found that the remaining two matches would not be interesting," he said.

He refused to blame the crowd for causing the shortened final. "I'm very pleased with the organizers who managed to control the crowd. Indonesian supporters are sometimes too enthusiastic," Johansson, who found himself dodging plastic bottles and sticks from time to time, said.

The organizers estimated the number of spectators at 12,000 on Saturday, well over the air-conditioned venue's 9,500 capacity.

The furious crowd also caused the Malaysian side to remain in their heavily-guarded locker room instead of participating in the medal presentation ceremony. No less than 600 standby security officers were stationed around the arena.

Malaysian team manager Punch Gunalan conceded that Indonesia's shuttlers were better, but complained about the overreacting home supporters. Amid a barrage of reporters, Gunalan said in a high- pitched voice: "I don't know what the crowd wants from us. Even without their vicious support, Indonesia would have beaten us."

PBSI Chairman Sumaryono apologized to Gunalan and his squad for the crowd's disruptive behavior. (amd/bas)