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)