Sigit and Chandra aim for records set by senior players
By Primastuti Handayani
JAKARTA (JP): With four Grand Prix titles to their names, the current World No. 1 men's doubles Sigit Budiarto and Chandra Wijaya of Indonesia still feel they are a shadow of their senior compatriots and 1996 Olympic gold medalists Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky.
"People know them much better than us. But we're not surprised, because they are our seniors and they won the Olympic title. Of course, I'm jealous over the attention they get, but it pushes me to work harder to achieve more than they have," Sigit, who was born in Yogyakarta on Nov. 24, 1975 told The Jakarta Post Thursday.
"This is the first time we are playing in Jakarta before our own public and also the first time we are taking part in a team event," said Sigit's partner Chandra, who was born in Cirebon, West Java, on Sept. 16, 1975.
However, they have the ambition to equal their seniors' records in international events. Although they have yet an idea of taking part in the Olympic Games, they aim to win the title.
"The Olympic Games are still a long way off, but of course we both expect to win the title," Sigit said.
"We shouldn't underestimate our future rivals. China, South Korea and Malaysia have potential doubles players who may block us from winning the title," said Chandra.
Chandra and Sigit won their first title at the 1996 US Open, followed by the 1996 Chinese Open, the 1996 Thailand Open and the 1997 Chinese Taipei Open.
They reached the quarterfinals in the 1996 Hong Kong Open, the semifinals of the 1996 Grand Prix Finals Championships in December and the quarterfinals of the 1997 Japan Open in January.
"I'm very thankful to God because without his blessing, I'm nothing. But still, I'm not satisfied with my record. We haven't taken part in major tournaments such as the All England Championships," said Chandra, who became Sigit's partner last September.
Both are keen to win the world's prestigious All England Championships, which is to be staged from March 11 to March 15 in Birmingham.
"Considering our potential opponents at the championships, I think we can reach the final. Hopefully, we can win it," said Chandra, a younger brother of World No. 4 Indra Wijaya.
They admitted that playing in a team event such as the ongoing A King Asia Cup is harder and involved more pressure in comparison to playing in individual tournaments.
"In individual tournaments, we only have to worry about ourselves. But for a team event, we must have good teamwork. The pressure is much higher and the burden is heavier," Sigit said.
Number one
Sigit and Chandra said being the top world players forces them to work even harder than before.
"When I first learned we were on the top list, I was very happy. But we have to be able to stay in the top position. If start feeling burdened, we try to ignore it. Our motto is to play our best," said Sigit, son of Sutoto and Nanik Sriniati.
Sigit, the third child in a family of four brothers and a sister, began playing badminton at the age of six. He joined the Djarum club in Kudus, Central Java from 1988 to 1994. After graduating from senior high school, Sigit, who used to be a singles player, moved to Jakarta to join the club's Jakarta branch in 1994.
"My coach suggested that I try playing doubles, and I liked it. I ended up as a doubles player until now," he said.
Sigit, who spends his spare time playing soccer and listening to music, partnered Dicky in his early years at the National Badminton center in Cipayung, since 1995.
In September 1996, coach Atik Djauhari partnered him with Chandra and their record took off like a rocket.
Chandra, the second son of Hendra Wijaya and Indranita, was also a singles player at the Rajawali club in Cirebon.
In 1989, he followed in his brother's footsteps and joined the Pelita club, where he was picked to enter the center by the end of 1993.
Chandra, who loves to watch TV and hang around in malls, changed from a singles to a doubles player after contracting liver disease in 1992.
"After I recovered, I was not allowed to play singles because of my illness. I played doubles instead and started to like it. Besides, my performance was not very bad," he said.
Chandra partnered for almost three years with Ade Sutrisna, who now partners Ade Lucas, and won the India Open recently. They could not perform very well until they were split.
Chandra and Sigit have the personalities of fire and ice. One is very cool and the other is very explosive on the court. But when they are not on the court, they are nice boys.
Coach Christian Hadinata predicted that Sigit and Chandra will be able to maintain their standings among the world's best shuttlers because they can cope with their position.
"They don't really think about their world rankings and that helps them to endure the pressure of being number one," he said.
However, Christian criticized their stamina.
"They have to work more on their physical condition, especially Sigit, if they want to remain as world elite doubles," he said.
Christian, a former national doubles player, said Sigit had good technique, although he felt that he was not in top physical condition.
Ambition
Sigit and Chandra expressed hope that -- if they are chosen as the country's squad in the 19th SEA Games here in October -- they could win another title.
"We will join the centralized training program, but the Badminton Association of Indonesia will select several players to join the main squad," said Sigit.
"But our main target this year is the All England and the World Championships," Chandra said.
The World Championships are to be staged in Glasgow, Scotland from May 25 to June 1. It will be preceded by the Sudirman Cup championships, from May 19 to May 24, at the same venue.
"We don't know if we have been appointed as team members for the Sudirman Cup. But I think taking part in the All England and the World Championships is enough. I don't think we can win both," said Chandra.
Both declined to respond on whether they have girlfriends.
"If our fans know we have girlfriends, they won't chase after us anymore," they both said, laughing.