Shuttlers gear up for Asian Badminton Championship
Shuttlers gear up for Asian Badminton Championship
JAKARTA (JP): Olympic gold medalists Candra Wijaya and Tony
Gunawan will split as Indonesia relies on young players in its
bid to regain its pride at the US$150,000 JVC Asian Badminton
Championship here this week.
Candra will team up with Antonius Irianto, with a possible
showdown against top seeds Chong Tan Fook/Lee Wan Wah of Malaysia
standing between them and the final berth.
Meanwhile, Tony will have former Olympic champion Rexy Mainaky
on his side. The pair are due to meet third seeds Ma Che Kong/Yau
Kwon Yuen of Hong Kong in the quarterfinals and if they pass the
test they could face another seeded pair, Kittipon
Kitikul/Khunakorn Sudhisodhi of Thailand in the semifinals.
"The separation enables us to play more relaxed because we
don't have to worry about the results or world rankings," Candra
told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.
A defeat in the tournament may cost Candra and Tony their
world number one ranking.
There will be 150 shuttlers from 18 countries participating in
the championship, to be played at the Senayan Indoor Stadium
starting on Wednesday.
Candra was speaking on the sidelines of a gathering with
badminton fans at Plaza Atrium Senen, Central Jakarta. Also
present were Tony and men's singles player Taufik Hidayat.
"I can't promise much but I hope to see Candra and Antonius in
the final match," said Tony.
As for Taufik, he said he did not set a certain target in the
championship.
"It's time for me to collect as much money as possible. My
target is over," he said.
Indonesia will rely on young players in the men's singles as
Hendrawan, the world number one, is absent after losing in the
Danish Open.
Taufik will be the backbone of the national men's singles team
together with Marleve Mainaky, Jefer Rosobin, Rony Agustinus,
Yudi Suprayogi, and Arief Rasidi.
Top seed Taufik looks like having no trouble in getting to the
quarterfinals, where he is due to meet eighth seed Park Tae-sang
of South Korea.
Meanwhile, second seed Wong Choon Han is likely to meet Lee
Hyun-il of South Korea in the final eight round, which also
expects to see China's best bet Lou Yigang play third seed
Marleve.
In the women's singles, Indonesia will be represented by
second seed Lidya Djaelawidjaja, Cindana Hartono, Ellen Angelina,
and Yuli Marfuah. Lidya is tipped to reach the final to meet top
seed Lee Kyung-won of South Korea.
Indonesia's best women's doubles team of Etty Tanri and Cyntia
Tuwankotta are the top seeds. The new pair of Deyana
Lomban/Carmelita is expected to meet second seeds Lee Hyo
Jung/Yim Kyung Jin from South Korea in the semifinals.
Meanwhile, the world mixed double team No. 1 Minarti Timur/Tri
Kusharyanto will also be separated, so the top seed will be Wahyu
Agung/Emma Ermawati. Minarti will have Bambang Suprianto as her
new partner.
Danish Open
In Copenhagen, top seeds Flandy Limpele/Eng Hian saved
Indonesia embarrassment by winning the men's doubles crown at the
Danish Open on Sunday. They beat second seeds Jens Eriksen/Jesper
Larsen of Denmark 15-13, 15-10 in the final, Satusport.com online
news provider reported.
Meanwhile, home favorite Peter Gade Christensen beat George
Rimarcdi, an Indonesian who plays for Sweden, 15-11, 15-12 in
their men's singles final. Earlier, George upset Hendrawan in the
semifinal 15-9, 15-2.
Earlier on Saturday, Danes Michael Sogaard and Rikke Olsen won
the mixed doubles title after defeating compatriots Mette
Schjoldager and Jens Eriksen 15-10, 8-15, 15-10. (nvn)