RI chases three titles at All England
RI chases three titles at All England
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's top badminton players are set to resume their race for more laurels at the All-England championships next week, with a repeat of last year's triple sweep in sight.
Men's singles champion Hariyanto Arbi, winner in the women's singles Susi Susanti, and the solid pair of Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky, the men's doubles title holders, were seeded top at the prestigious tournament in Birmingham.
Hariyanto is out to confirm his world number one spot with a rare men's singles crown hat trick. The 23-year-old player, armed with his steamrolling smashes, remains far from matching his predecessor and All England living legend Rudy Hartono who racked up eight titles during his heyday in the 1970s.
But as far as statistics count, Hariyanto looks to be the favorite after his fine start this season. He scored two victories in two appearances in Japan and Korea Opens last January.
All England men's singles is expected to rerun last year's final showdown pitting Hariyanto and Ardy Wiranata, who is now seeded second. World champion Joko Suprianto was ranked third, followed by Olympic gold medalist Alan Budikusuma and Taipei Open winner Hermawan Susanto.
Hariyanto's fellow top seeds Susi and the combination of Ricky and Rexy also carry equally perfect records, triumphing in two world badminton tour openers they took part in, in Tokyo and Seoul.
Susi, who has collected all major trophies, is poised to secure her fifth All England title, while the world number one men's pair are gunning a sweet consolation for their bitter loss to compatriots Bambang Suprianto and Rudy Gunawan in last year's final.
"They emerge as the hot favorites, but they, especially Susi, are suffering from big pressures. They may fall if they fail to overcome their nerves," badminton maestro Rudy said yesterday.
"Non-technical skills will be the key factor on their way to claiming their titles," said Rudy.
Susi leads a pack of three players who join the seeding list. Uber Cup heroine Mia Audina, whose bright run was halted by eventual finalist Ye Zhaoying of China last year, was seeded sixth, three places ahead of veteran Yuliani Sentosa.
The Badminton Association of Indonesia has set a reasonable target of retaining the three titles. The national badminton body excludes a possible victory by the slumping women's pair of Finarsih and Lili Tampi who were seeded third this year.
All top players will skip two European trips to Sweden and Switzerland which serve as the warm-up for the All England. Marleve Mainaky leads Indonesian second stringers in the Swiss Open which starts tomorrow. (amd)