Ricky and Rexy save the day for Indonesia

Ricky and Rexy save the day for Indonesia

SEOUL (Agencies): World men's doubles champions Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky claimed Indonesia's share of the final day's honors at the Korea Open badminton championships yesterday.

The Indonesian number one pair survived a second-set thriller to beat Malaysian arch rivals Cheah Soo Kit and Yap Kim Hock 15- 5, 17-14 to win the title, their second in a row.

Ricky and Rexy got off to a flying start this Olympic season with a victory in the Japan Open last Sunday. They also beat the Malaysian duo in the process.

The men's doubles crown saved Indonesia's blushes in the third leg of the world badminton grand prix series. The biggest upset came in the men's singles when home favorite Lee Kwan-jin shot down world champion and top seed Hariyanto Arbi in the quarterfinals.

Lee went on to the final, only to crash to veteran compatriot Kim Hak-kyun in straight sets on Friday. South Koreans also won the women's doubles on Friday when Gil Young-ah and Jang Hye-ock clawed their way back to upset compatriots Kim Shin-young and Kim Mee-hyang 1-15, 15-11, 15-4.

South Korean players completed their gold medal haul yesterday by winning the women's singles and mixed doubles.

World number two and top seed Bang Soo-hyun took the winner's US$6,250 prize with a comprehensive pounding of her 12th-ranked Chinese opponent Yao Yan 11-3 11-0.

Bang, playing her first tournament of the year, set the pace from the start with a barrage of drop shots and straight drives.

In the mixed doubles veteran Park Joo-bong maintained his solid partnership with Ra Kyung-min to land their second straight title by beating Simon Archer and Julie Bradbury of Britain 15-9, 15-11.