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Indonesian shuttlers pass first hurdles in Denmark
Indonesiaâs menâs doubles pair of Mohammad Ahsan/Hendra Setiawan and mixed doubles duo Tontowi Ahmad/Liliyana Natsir overcame their first hurdles at the 2014 Denmark Open Super Series Premier in Odense, Denmark, on Wednesday
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ndonesia's men's doubles pair of Mohammad Ahsan/Hendra Setiawan and mixed doubles duo Tontowi Ahmad/Liliyana Natsir overcame their first hurdles at the 2014 Denmark Open Super Series Premier in Odense, Denmark, on Wednesday.
Ahsan/Hendra secured their second-round spot after defeating Japan's Hirokatsu Hashimoto/Noriyasu Hirata 22-20, 24-22, while Tontowi/Liliyana outplayed the host country's Niclas Nohr/Sara Thygesen 21-16, 21-19.
'Unlike our previous encounters, Hashimoto/Hirata were really good at defense; it was so difficult for us to penetrate [their defense],' Ahsan said after the match.
The two pairs previously met at last year's championships and the 2014 Japan Open. The Indonesian duo, which recently won the Incheon Asian Games gold medal, won in both encounters.
Ahsan said they had not reached top form in their first match of the tournament, but added that they were able to perform calmly and finish the game well thanks to experience.
Meanwhile, Liliyana said despite facing a relatively unknown pair from Denmark, it was not easy to defeat Nohr/Thygesen.
'Since they are not a seeded pair, they played without any burden. They had a good defense,' she said.
Ahsan/Hendra and Tontowi/Liliyana are the latest Indonesian shuttlers to have made it to the next round of the US$600,000 tournament, which runs from Oct. 14 until Oct. 19.
Late on Tuesday, the younger mixed doubles pair of Riky Widianto/Puspita Richi Dili beat Michael Fuchs/Birgit Michels of Germany 21-11, 21-13 while Praveen Jordan/Debby Susanto overcame Hong Kong's Chun Hei Lee/Hoi Wah Chau 21-16, 20-22, 24-22.
Unfortunately, other national players crashed early in the first round.
Mixed doubles pair Gideon Markus Fernaldi/Rizki Amelia Pradipta fell at the hands of Danish duo Mathias Christiansen/Lena Grebak 20-22, 7-21. Veteran pair Markis Kido/Pia Zebadiah Bernadeth bowed out to Japan's Keigo Sonoda/Shizuka Matsuo 27-25, 21-19, while Muhammad Rijal/Vita Marissa were defeated by the host's Mads Pieler Kolding/Kamilla Rytter Juhl 21-17, 17-21, 22-20.
New men's doubles pair Andrei Adistia/Hendra Aprida Gunawan, who made their way to the main event through a qualifying round, had to surrender to the dominance of Max Schwenger/Josche Zurwonne of Germany, losing 21-17, 15-21, 21-19.
In the men's singles event, Tommy Sugiarto had to pack his bags early after bowing out to Chinese Tian Houwei 21-14, 21-14.
Meanwhile, other Indonesian shuttlers still have chances open to them. Men's singles player Dionysius Hayom Rumbaka was slated to play late on Wednesday against China's Wang Zhengming. Women's doubles pair Shendy Puspa Irawati/Vita Marissa was set to play against Japan's Reika Kakiiwa/Miyuki Maeda while Pia Zebadiah Bernadeth/Rizki Amelia Pradipta were to face another Japanese pair, Shizuka Matsuo/Mami Naito. Gideon Markus Fernaldi/Markis Kido were the last men's doubles pair to compete in Wednesday's matches, playing against France's Lucas Corvee/Brice Leverdez.
