Subagyo upbeat about RI men's singles chances in Korea Open

Subagyo upbeat about RI men's singles chances in Korea Open

JAKARTA (JP): Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI)
chairman Subagyo Hadisiswoyo expressed optimism that Indonesian
men's singles shuttlers would perform well at the six-star Korea
Open despite the absence of the country's two top players.

"From the draw, I can say both Marlev Mainaky and Budi Santoso
have better chances than their juniors Johan Hadikusuma and Rony
Agustinus," Subagyo told The Jakarta Post on Friday at the
Indonesian Badminton Center in Cipayung, East Jakarta, before
briefing the shuttlers.

"But that doesn't mean the other two shuttlers don't stand a
chance. It's just about having a greater chance. It also depends
on their own preparations."

World number one Taufik Hidayat will miss the Jan. 10 to Jan.
14 tournament at Cheju island, South Korea, after receiving a
two-international-tournament ban from PBSI for criticizing
Subagyo in November. He also will miss the Grand Prix Finals in
Brunei from March 28 to April 1.

Olympic silver medalist Hendrawan, the world number four, will
miss the US$250,000 event because he is getting married on Sunday
in his hometown of Malang, East Java, and will attend a wedding
reception at his bride Silvia Anggraini's home in Tegal, Central
Java, on Jan. 11.

Men's singles coach Agus Dwi Santoso also was confident his
athletes would excel in the first event of the new year despite
their lack of preparation.

"The men's singles shuttlers didn't train enough due to the
long Christmas, Idul Fitri and New Year holiday. We can only rely
on their individual preparations."

"However, it's good to send the second stringers to give them
a chance to gain experience. The younger players soon will have
to replace veterans like Hendrawan."

The International Badminton Federation made Dane Peter Gade
Christensen the number one seed for the tournament, followed by
China's Ji Zinpeng and Xia Xuanze.

Sixth-seed Marlev will receive a first-round bye and will meet
the winner of the match between South Korea's Kim Hak-kyun and
Japan's Yousuke Nakanishi in the second round.

Tenth-seed Budi Santoso will face China's Bao Chunlai -- the
semifinalist in the World Junior Championships for the Bimantara
Cup in Guangzhou, China, in November -- in the first round.

Johan, the 12th seed in the event, will meet Kwon Woo-jin of
South Korea, while Rony will open against Ng Wei of Hong Kong.

Indonesia's best hope in the tournament will be in the men's
doubles.

Top seeds Flandy Limpele and Eng Hian are expected to add
another title to their collection. Last year they won the
Malaysia Open and Danish Open.

Flandy and Eng Hian will have a bye in the first round and
will meet Allansvkh Jargalsaikhan and Batkhurel Ochirpurev of
Mongolia in the second round.

The Indonesians are expected to meet Kim Dong-moon and Ha Tae-
kwon of South Korea in the quarterfinals.

The team of Candra Wijaya and Tony Gunawan, the Olympic gold
medalists, will be split up for the event. Candra will play with
former partner Sigit Budiarto, a duo that won the 1997 World
Championships before Sigit was banned for one year after testing
positive for performance-enhancing drugs at the 1998 Singapore
Open.

The sixth seeded Indonesians will have a bye in the first
round and will face South Koreans Kim Young-gil and Han Dong Sung
in the second round.

Tony will play with former partner Halim Heryanto. This
partnership won the 1999 World Grand Prix Finals before being
split up. They will face the Danish pair of Lars Paaske and
Mathias Boe in the first round.

PBSI also is sending the young doubles team of Nova Widhiyanto
and Endra Mulyajaya, who will have a first-round bye. They will
meet Huang Shin Chung and Chien Yu Shun of Chinese Taipei in the
second round. (nvn)