Susi's crunch match with Bang still in the cards
Susi's crunch match with Bang still in the cards
LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AFP): Susi Susanti's eagerly-awaited
rematch with Bang Soo Hyun became a step nearer to reality as
both reached the quarter-finals at the world badminton
championships here on Wednesday.
World and Olympic champion Susi of Indonesia pushed South
Korean Bang into the runner-up spot in both of those events.
But when Bang won the Asian Games in Hiroshima in October last
year, beating Susi's conqueror Hizako Mizui of Japan in the
final, she vowed to get revenge at these world championships.
"I'm out to get here," Bang said of Susi at the time.
Top seed Susi beat China's Yao Yan with little difficulty.
Susi trailed 7-4 in the second game, but then went into overdrive
to win 11-7, 11-8.
Bang beat the last player from outside Europe or Asia in the
fourth round. Bang ousted Denyse Julien of Canada 11-2, 11-7.
China's Zhang Ning is continuing to prove a dangerous floater
as she beat her second seeded player in succession.
Zhang won the tightest match of the round against 5/8 seed Ra
Kyung Min of South Korea 12-10, 12-11. On Tuesday, Zhang, world
ranked 29th, beat Sweden's 9/16 seed Christine Magnusson.
All England runner-up and Europe's best hope for gold Camilla
Martin of Denmark breezed through against Japan's Yasuko Mizui.
And China's sixth world ranked Ye Zhaoying, who beat Bang in
last week's Sudirman Cup, now meets Martin having disposed of
Yuni Kartika of Indonesia.
Han Jingna of China, seeded 5/8, marched past Yuliana Sentosa
of Indonesia 11-6, 11-8.
China-born Lim Xiaoming of Sweden struggled slightly in her
match. She beat China's world number 20 Hu Ning 11-7, 12-9, but
Lim trailed 7-2 in the second set and needed four match points
before winning with an accurate lob.
Men's singles
In the men's singles, top seed Hariyanto Arbi thrashed Russian
Vladislav Tichimorov 15-8, 15-7 to set up a fifth round tie with
South Korea's Lee Kwang Jin.
Left-hander Lee, seeded 9/16, was on court 42 minutes before
beating Sweden's 6ft 6in Thomas Johansson 15-13, 18-17.
World champion Joko Suprianto, who beat Germany's Todor
Velkov, now faces South Korea's Dong Jiong, conqueror of
Denmark's Martin Lundgaaard Hansen.
China's 27th ranked Chen Gang caused a surprise to get the
better of 9/16 seeded Indonesian Lioe Tiong Ping 15-9, 15-12.
Ping's netted backhand ended the match, but Indonesia still
has five of the top eight seeds in the competition as a
formidable consolation.
Chen will have a tougher test against All England champion
Poul Erik Hoyer Larsen of Denmark, who knocked out Sweden's
Henrik Bengtsson 15-7, 15-11.
Earlier, men's doubles top seeds Rexy Mainaky and Ricky
Subagdja and women's favorites Ge Fei and Gu Jun cruised through
two rounds.
China's Ge and Gu, the 1995 Asian champions, easily disposed
of New Zealand's Rhona Robertson/Tammy Jenkins and England's
Gillian Gowers/Joanne Muggeridge in the second and third rounds.
Rexy and Ricky had a bye in their second round match, before
beating Australia's Paul Staight and Peter Blackburn 15-5, 15-11.
The Indonesian All-England champions have their first real
test against 9/16 seeds Henrik Svarrer and Michael Sogaard of
Denmark in the fourth round.