Doubles pair makes the semis, the rest go home

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sun, 03/09/2008 11:16 AM

Securing five quarterfinal spots in the US$200,000 All England badminton championships, most of Indonesia's shuttlers have crashed out, leaving only a mixed doubles pair at the sport's oldest event.

Nova Widianto and Lilyana Natsir, who booked a semifinal berth at the championships, had clinched their second world championship title in August last year. The pair lived up to their top billing to beat Chinese fifth seeded pair He Han Bin and Yu Yang 22-20, 15-21, 21-8.

The second seeds will take on crowd favorites and 2006 world champions Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms of England, eighth seeded here, in the semifinals. The English pair ousted 'mixed pair' Robert Blair of England and Imogen Bankier 21-14, 21-16 in the quarterfinals.

Nova and Lilyana had met Robertson and Emms six times. Both pairs split a 3:3 career record with the Indonesians taking the last two encounters at the China Super Series in November last year and the Singapore Open in June in 2006.

If Nova and Lilyana win the semifinal battle, they edge closer to becoming the first Indonesians to win the tournament since 2003, and the second Indonesians to win the mixed doubles event in history.

Candra Wijaya and Sigit Budiarto won the men's doubles in 2003, while Christian Hadinata and Imelda Wiguna became the only Indonesians to win a mixed doubles title in 1979.

Four other Indonesian quarterfinalists fell to their opponents in Friday's quarterfinal matches.

Indonesia's ace Taufik Hidayat saw his hopes to win the title for the first time dented by his close friend Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, in a 23-21, 21-17 match. So far, the world No. 7 has an Olympic gold medal, Asian Games gold medal, world championship title and a super series title, but no All England title.

World No. 6 compatriot Sony Dwi Kuncoro also exited the tournament after losing to fourth seed Chen Jin of China 21-14, 21-12.

Indonesia was once a dominant force in the All England men's singles with badminton great Rudy Hartono taking the title eight times.

Haryanto Arbi, who won the All England in 1993 and 1994, was the last Indonesian to win the men's singles event.

In men's doubles, Asian Games runner-up veterans Luluk Hadiyanto and Alvent Yulianto Chandra also fell to evergreen Malaysian Choong Tan Fook and Lee Wan Wah 21-15, 21-15.

Jo Novita and Greysia Polii, who played in the women's doubles, failed to beat the odds after succumbing to top seeds and world No. 1 Zhang Yawen and Wei Yili of China 21-8, 21-13.

Separately, world No. 1 Lin Dan of China cruised into the All-England Championships semifinals Friday after seeing off Denmark's Kenneth Jonassen 21-7, 21-11, but the three-time winner from China admitted it was becoming harder to maintain his desire.

"Now I have won the championship a few times it is becoming harder to maintain my motivation and I need a new challenge," he said, as quoted by AFP.

A  |   A  |   A  |    |   |    |    |    |  

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.