RI top seed cruises to next round

Indonesian mixed doubles top seed Nova Widiyanto and Lilyana Natsir cruised to the second round at the Beijing Olympics after defeating Han Sanghun and Hwang Yumi of South Korea 23-21, 21-19 in 41 minutes.

At the same time, men's singles player Sony Dwi Kuncoro, a national medal hopeful, ousted Ville Lang of Finland 21-13, 21-18 in 42 minutes.

"We are relieved, this first match was huge for us. We are happy to win and progress into the next round," Nova said.

"In the first game, we were hitting in the direction of the wind so it was easy for us to attack. The draft helped us and we used it to our advantage."

Nova said that Indonesia still had a chance of winning gold in Sony and women's singles player Maria Kristin Yulianti.

Meanwhile, Lilyana said she still didn't fell good about her playing.

"When we rallied, the shuttle kept going out. In the beginning, we didn't settle fast enough, but we gained momentum eventually late in the first game," she said. "I hope tomorrow will be
better than today."

The Indonesians will now face Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam of Thailand, who beat Mike Beres and Val Loker of Canada 21-9, 21-9.

Sony said that Lang's defense posed a problem during the second-round match.

"He was always prepared whenever I smashed. That's why I had to force a long rally. I waited for him to make unforced errors," he said.

Sony will face Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

"He's a tough contender," Sony said. "We will see what happens at the quarters." (*****)