RI's Angie reaches Wimbledon junior final
JAKARTA (JP): Angelique Widjaja attracted the attention of tennis fans over the last week as she made history by becoming the first Indonesian to make it to the final of Wimbledon, albeit in the junior event.
In many respects, her achievement exceeds that of former Indonesian star Yayuk Basuki, who reached the main Wimbledon quarterfinals in 1997.
Angie, her nickname, will face Marat Safin's younger sister Dinara in Saturday's final. The Russian 15th seed defeated British ninth seed Anne Keothavong 6-2, 6-1 Friday.
Angie has lived up to her promise as a future star, reaching the Wimbledon final after making it to the U.S. Open junior semifinals in the doubles with Kumiko Iijima of Japan.
She has competed in 33 junior events, including the Grand Slam junior series, with 71 wins and 26 losses.
She has won eight junior series, including four consecutive titles at the Singapore International Junior Championships, the Mali Milk Cup in Thailand, the 11th Mitsubishi Lanser in the Philippines and the Japan Open.
Her achievements led the Indonesian Tennis Association to include the Bandung-born girl, who will celebrate her 17th birthday on Dec. 12, on the Southeast Asian Games team in favor of veteran player Wukirasih Sawondari.
Angie's quest for tennis greatness has been supported by her father Rico Widjaja, a businessman, and mother Amanda Salim. Since the age of four, Angie, the youngest of six children, has been playing tennis, following her five older brothers to the FIKS tennis school in Bandung.
She has been coached by Meyske Handayani Wiguna since the first day she held a racket. Over the last few years, Angie has also been coached by Deddy Tedjamukti, a former national player.
Unlike previous tournaments where her parents accompanied her, Angie must manage by herself in London.
"Angie is in London with her coach, who was appointed by International Tennis Federation (ITF). But Angie will call back home when she wins or loses the match," Amanda told The Jakarta Post by phone from Bandung on Saturday.
She also said the 173-centimeter tall high school student was able to compete at Wimbledon thanks to the ITF Grand Slam Development Fund, which is covering all of Angie's expenses.
An admirer of Martina Hingis of Switzerland and Lindsay Davenport of the United States, Angie aims to break into the world's top 20. Right now, she is ranked eighth by the ITF and 613th by the World Tennis Association.
"I have dreamed of being a world-class tennis player ever since I was young. I want to enter the world's top 20, hopefully I can accomplish it in my 20s. I have spent my childhood on tennis courts, so I won't stop until I fulfill my goal," she told the Post earlier this year after winning the Cigna Open.
The student of Taruna Bhakti high school likes to spend her free time in her room, listening to the radio or chatting on the Internet.
The Internet is also helping her parents follow her progress at Wimbledon, since none of local TV stations are broadcasting the matches.
"We always monitor Angie's matches through the Internet at the Wimbledon's official website, which provides real-time scores," Amanda said.
Being a religious family, Amanda contributed Angie's success to God.
"Angie's is walking in God's way. If God wants her to win, she will win," she said. (ivy/yan)
Road to final
Semifinals: bt Elena Baltacha (Gbr) 5-7, 7-6 (7-2) 6-2; Quarterfinals: bt Barbora Strycova (Cze) 6-1, 6-4; Third round: bt Myriam Casanova (Swi) 6-4, 6-1; Second round: bt Annette Kolb (Ger) 7-5, 6-4; First round: bt Shuai Peng (Chn) 6-3, 6-0.