RI out to keep perfect Thomas Cup record

RI out to keep perfect Thomas Cup record

By Arif Suryobuwono

HONG KONG (JP): Defending Thomas Cup champion Indonesia has
already assured itself of a semifinal berth, but it is out to
maintain a spotless record in today's last group match against
England.

Indonesia's training director Iwan Setiawan said yesterday he
had asked his players to sweep all five games left to play,
although he warned them that England's top singles player Darren
Hall might prove tough to beat.

A win will put Indonesia on top of Group A and earn it a
semifinal matching with Group B runner-up. The Cup holder beat
China 3-2 and Sweden 5-0 in the previous matches. Former champion
China will play Sweden.

The Group B will see tougher rivalry, with Malaysia, Denmark
and South Korea having the same chance to reach Friday's
semifinals.

Denmark will finish first in its group if it beats Malaysia
today. 1992 champion Malaysia, which lost to South Korea on
Friday, needs a perfect 5-0 win to secure a semifinal berth.
Winning just one game today will be worth a gold for unbeaten
Denmark, provided that South Korea thrashes Hong Kong with a
resounding 5-0.

Iwan said he was satisfied with the way his team had performed
so far, despite the general consensus that world number one Joko
Suprianto is getting weaker. "We have the advantage of having
three singles players and two doubles pairs of more or less equal
strength," Iwan said.

Denmark's team manager Morten Frost Hansen ominously compared
Indonesia's unbeaten record to a bubble ready to burst.
"Joko Suprianto is getting older. No one is afraid of him now,"
Frost said.

Iwan said he expected a heavy semifinal match regardless of
which Danish player his team meets. "Denmark has strong singles
players who can cause problems for our players," he said.

Danish top player Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen said on Sunday he
believed that a win today over Malaysian ace, Rashid Sidek, would
clinch his team's victory over Malaysia.

Frost said both his team and Malaysia's stood an equal chance
of winning. "We want to beat Malaysia in order to make it to the
top of our group, and to take on China," the former All-England
champion said.

Malaysia was setting its sights too high if it believed that
it could make it to the final, Frost scoffed. "Malaysia has not
done anything to suggest that its three singles players can beat
us."

On the other hand, Malaysia's team manager Dato Dr. Abdullah
Fadzil Che Wan admitted that Denmark's three singles players were
very strong. "But I believe we can offset that with our two
doubles pairs and a singles player," Fadzil said.

He declined to name the singles player on whose shoulder his
team's fortunes would rest. "It would be a bonus if two of our
singles players win."

Fadzil said that even if Denmark were to field the world
number three team of Thomas Lund and Jon Holst Christensen,
Malaysia would not be daunted. "We are confident we can handle
them," Fadzil said.

Malaysian coach Razif Sidek added that if his team should
advance to the final, it would prefer to take on China than
Indonesia.

"China's doubles pairs are weaker than Indonesia's," said
Razif. The RI doubles team saved Indonesia's blushes when it
narrowly beat China 3-2 in a match billed as a Thomas Cup final
dress rehearsal last Friday.

Top Korean player Park Sung-woo echoed Fadzil's opinion,
saying it would be more convenient for his team to take on China
in the semifinals.

China's manager Li Yongbo admitted that his doubles teams,
especially his second pair, were indeed weak. "But remember, our
first doubles team has beaten the world's best doubles pairs:
Indonesia, Malaysia and Denmark," Li said.

Meanwhile, South Korean coach Soon Han-kuk said that a 5-0 win
over Hong Kong would make up for the 2-3 defeat to Denmark on
Sunday.

Today's fixtures:
Indonesia v England
China v Sweden
S. Korea v Hong Kong
Malaysia v Denmark