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fter making it to the semifinals of the recent Sudirman Cup world mixed team badminton championships, Indonesia’s top shuttlers are optimistic of a strong showing at the upcoming US$600,000 Indonesia Open Super Series Premier championships in Jakarta.

For women’s doubles ace Greysia Polii, the top-flight Badminton World Federation tournament serves as a significant stage to increase her qualifying points for the London Olympics, while men’s singles veteran Taufik Hidayat wants to break Ardy B Wiranata’s record of six triumphs in the tournament.

“My main focus is the Olympics, and as the Indonesia Open is a Super Series Premier event, is crucial for my partner [Meiliana Jauhari] and I to collect qualifying points here,” Greysia said Saturday.

“We are hoping to raise our performance, which has been steady at the moment,” she added. Greysia has retained a world top 10 ranking since November last year.

The world number five women’s doubles player was speaking on the sidelines of the Celebrities Smash publicity event between top shuttlers and celebrities in Jakarta to promote the tournament, which will feature players from 28 countries and be broadcast live by Trans7.

Disappointed with the men’s singles performance at the Sudirman Cup, world number two Taufik Hidayat said he hoped the newer Indonesian players would display a better fighting spirit at the Indonesia Open and challenge for a spot in the world’s top five. The highest ranked Indonesian after Taufik is Simon Santoso, who had a poor showing at the Sudirman Cup.

Taufik is the third seed at the Indonesia Open, while perennial nemeses Malaysian Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan of China are ranked first and second respectively.

“There’s no doubt I am seeking both a seventh title here and also more points for London. After witnessing the poor performance of the men’s singles at the Sudirman Cup, I expect a stronger challenge from the newer Indonesian players,” Taufik said.

He last won the Indonesia Open in 2006, matching the legendary Ardy B Wiranata’s record six victories at the event in the 1990s. Taufik’s five other wins at the Indonesia Open were in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004.

Indonesian men’s doubles pairing Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan pledged to raise the level of their game following a string of losses due to Hendra’s injuries late last year.

“We are hoping to peak here and at the World Championships [in London in August]. The pressure at an individual championship like the Indonesia Open is less intense than in mixed team event like the Sudirman Cup,” Kido said. He did not partner with regular teammate Hendra at the Sudirman Cup this year.

“Before the Indonesia Open, however, we hope we can also win the Singapore Open,” Hendra said, giving reassurances that he had fully recovered from his injuries. The pair will play in the Singapore Open Super Series on June 14-19.