RI set sights low for Malaysia Open in Johor Baru

RI set sights low for Malaysia Open in Johor Baru

JAKARTA (JP): Fifty of Indonesia's badminton players left for
the Malaysia Open championships in Johor Baru, yesterday, with
slim prospects of continuing their winning ways after their
victorious Thomas and Uber Cup campaigns.

"We're not putting too much pressure on our shuttlers at the
tournament," RAJ Gosal, secretary general of the Badminton
Association of Indonesia (PBSI), said yesterday.

He admitted that Indonesian players saw a turning point in
their performance after their glorious run at the world's most
prestigious badminton team championships last May.

"We just want our players to maintain enough world grand prix
points so they can secure places at the season-ending tournament
in December," Gosal said.

He expected that the shuttlers would regain their form at the
Indonesia Open in Yogyakarta next month.

"Don't forget that our main target, after the coveted Thomas
Cup and Uber Cup trophies, is mining gold at the Asian Games,"
Gosal said.

PBSI has vowed to take at least three golds at the event, to
be held in Hiroshima in October. Indonesia, which is now
considered to be a world badminton powerhouse, has never won a
single gold since its first appearance at the quadrennial event
in 1950.

Indonesia's makeshift squad, heavy on second string players,
enters the six-star championships with three titles at stake. The
national team swept the top honors thanks to world badminton
queen Susi Susanti, Olympic men's singles silver medalist Ardy
Wiranata and the then world men's doubles number one Ricky
Subagja and Rexy Mainaky.

Susi, her male counterpart Joko Suprianto and world's top
ranked men's pair of Bambang Suprianto and Rudy Gunawan are
seeded first in their respective divisions at the July 6-10
event. Ardy is seeded second, ahead of countrymen Hermawan
Susanto and Olympic winner Alan Budikusuma.

Joko, who was benched during Indonesia's 3-0 rout over
Malaysia in the Thomas Cup grand final, is tipped to meet Chinese
rising star Dong Jiong. Jiong took Joko out of the Asia Cup in
Beijing in the quarterfinals and eventually went on to win the
tournament.

Susi faces a tough hurdle in the form of Hang Jingna of China
in the semifinals before renewing her old rivalry with world
second best Ye Zhaoying, who is also from China.

Missing

Indonesia will be missing the All-England, men's, singles
title-holder Hariyanto Arbi and the world women's number two
doubles team of Lili Tampi and Finarsih. The absentees are
scheduled to take part in the World Cup invitational
championships in Vietnam at the end of this month.

Gosal said his players had been briefed to watch their tempers
during the matches, where they will possibly face harassment by
fanatic home fans in retaliation for the disruptive conduct of
Indonesian fans during the Thomas and Uber Cups finals.

The national ace shuttlers will go to Singapore before playing
on their home turf at the Aug. 10-14 event.

Gosal has speculated that Susi will play mixed doubles with
her elder brother Rudy Haditono at the Konica Open in Singapore.
The local daily, News Strait Times, reported on Friday that the
world champion opted to miss the women's singles so she could
save her energy. Susi will play women's singles in Vietnam and
Yogyakarta. (amd)