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World No. 3 men's duo ready to break All England jinx

Although Hendra Setiawan is not fully physically fit after a recent bout of dengue fever, he and Markis Kido, the world number three men's pairing, are ready to break their jinx at the upcoming All England Open Super Series

Agnes Winarti (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sat, March 6, 2010

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World No. 3 men's duo ready to break All England jinx

A

lthough Hendra Setiawan is not fully physically fit after a recent bout of dengue fever, he and Markis Kido, the world number three men's pairing, are ready to break their jinx at the upcoming All England Open Super Series.

Hendra and Markis will set off for Birmingham, England, along with the rest of the country's All England squad, on Saturday night, their fifth participation at the prestigious event, which runs Mar. 9-14.

"I was still a little dizzy when I started training, but I'm getting better now. I'm 80 percent ready," Hendra said at the sidelines of Friday's launch of local badminton apparel brand Flypower, which is the pair's main sponsor.

"As *Hendra's* has not fully recovered, I'm ready to back him up 120 percent. We are both eager to win this prestigious title," Markis said.

This year marks the fifth appearance for Markis and Hendra at the All England Open.

Despite their world class achievements, which include being crowned world champions in 2007 as well as winning gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, Markis and Hendra have not fared as well in their past All England stints.

Last year, both were absent from the event due to Markis' nagging knee injury. Last year, the pair won Super Series titles in Malaysia, Japan and France.

Their best All England finish so far was reaching the second round in 2007, where they lost to unseeded South Koreans Han Sang Hoon and Yoo Yeon Seong.

At their last All England appearance in 2008, Hendra and Markis, who were second seeds, lost in the first round to the little known Japanese pairing of Keita Masuda and Tadashi Ohtsuka in shocking straight sets 21-19, 21-9.

This year the pair, seeded third, will face another unseeded Japanese pair, Naoki Kawamae and Shoji Sato, in the first round.

"We will play with careful tactics this time instead of venting our energy on merely attacking," Markis said, acknowledging that the "mystical atmosphere" of the All England event contributed to their previous losses. Hendra also pointed out that the cold climate made the shuttlecock heavier than usual.

"We will not be careless this time. We won't underestimate our opponents," Hendra said.

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