RI to face Malaysia in A King Asia Cup finals

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's shuttlers face Malaysia in today's final of the US$150,000 A King Asia Cup championships at the Senayan Tennis Indoor Stadium.

The final will be broadcast live by SCTV starting at 2 p.m.

Indonesia eliminated South Korea 3-0 while Malaysia beat Chinese Taipei 2-1 yesterday.

Indonesia's world ranked number four Indra Wijaya overcame Park Sung-woo, ranked sixth, 15-6, 15-8 in 45 minutes.

"I played slower today and he seemed to have trouble answering my deceptive shots," Indra commented on his win.

"I have been feeling unwell since yesterday. I've had a stomach ache and am having problems with the weather here," Park complained through an interpreter.

Indra, who has lost to Park three times, made few unforced errors and earned many points from hard and deep smashes. Park, on the other hand, made many unforced errors and was unable to perform at his best.

Coach Tong Sin Fu said the key factor in Indra's win was the fact that he played patiently.

"Yesterday he was very tense and so he was beaten easily. Today, he played much better," he said.

World No. 1 men's doubles Sigit Budiarto/Chandra Wijaya showed their class against Lee Dong-soo/Yoo Yong-sung to win 15-6, 15-8.

About 500 spectators, who all threw their weight behind the national pair, applauded and yelled every time Sigit jumped to smash a winner.

"When we first came on court, we thought the Koreans would play fast and aggressive so we would have to be quicker than them. When they took control we tried to change the rhythm to confuse them and we did," said Chandra, Indra's younger brother.

Coach Atik Djauhari said that he was not surprised his charges won easily.

Indonesia's second singles Budi Santoso, world ranked 11, also won, beating Kim Chul-joung 15-9, 15-7.

Malaysia's Ong Ewe Hock, world ranked five, overcame old hand Fung Permadi of Chinese Taipei, world ranked eight, 9-15, 18-13, 15-13 after much hard work.

"I'm very self-confident since I haven't lost to him. But I was under pressure in the first set," Ong said.

"It's too bad that I lost the most important points. He always tried to play fast and I just couldn't match his speed," Fung said.

Malaysia's doubles unexpectedly lost to Huang Shih Chung/Chien Yu Hsun, the 1996 Junior World Championship's runner-up, 15-8, 5- 15, 10-15.

But Malaysia's second singles Pang Chen, world number 35, beat Chien Yu Hsiu 15-11, 15-6 in the deciding match.

Exciting

Malaysia's coach Soffian Abubakar said that the match between Ong and Indra, who might play as Indonesia's first singles, would be exciting.

"If they both play as first singles, the match will be interesting because their record is 1-1. Moreover, Indra is playing in front of his own public," he said.

Ong beat Indra in the 1996 Malaysian Open final but Indra took revenge in a 1996 World Grand Prix Finals' round-robin match.

Indonesia's team manager Indra Gunawan expressed his satisfaction at the shuttlers' performance.

"They are getting better every day. They are all playing tactically and efficiently. I have already told the players that we might lose one match tomorrow," he said.

"If Indra keeps playing the way he did today against Ong tomorrow, he has a good chance of winning again," he added.

Gunawan said that Indonesia's target was only to reach the final and that the team was not the favorite.

"It will be a very great and proud moment for our players if they win the championships. They have a 50-50 chance," he said. (yan)