L

ast Sunday’s Thomas Cup final match brought back memories of Sambas Mangundikarta, a phenomenal announcer on state-run radio and television, RRI and TVRI back in the 1980s.

To watch the games I would be glued to the TV set while the late Sambas greeted badminton fans with “My fellow Indonesians wherever you are […]” in his live reports.

He always uttered patriotic words, boosting our nationalism and pride as Indonesians while watching the badminton matches. It felt like war especially when Indonesia encountered archrival Malaysia in the Thomas Cup and Sambas’ reporting allowed the audience to become carried away in the battle between the shuttlers of both countries.

Three decades have passed. Sambas passed away in 1999. Indonesia is no longer a badminton powerhouse.

However, some things remain the same.

The esprit de corps for Indonesians whenever the national squad is competing is still there, just like last Sunday’s Thomas Cup final against Denmark in Kunshan, China.

Denmark finally brought home the coveted trophy for the first time, overpowering Indonesia 3-2.

It was the fifth meeting between the two countries in Thomas Cup finals, with Indonesia winning in the previous four matches. They met in the 1964 Tokyo final and twice in Jakarta in 1973 and 1979. The fourth meeting took place in 1996 in Hong Kong, where Indonesia won 5-0.

Both countries also met in the semifinals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2000, where Indonesia won 3-2 and in 2002 in Guangzhou, China, where Indonesia won 3-0.

The Danes’ victory this time was the result of a never-ending effort in building domestic competitions, competing in international tournaments as well as improving badminton development in Denmark.

Despite Sunday’s defeat, many Indonesians reacted positively to the team and their performance during the competition. Many Indonesians — fans and non-badminton fans — voiced their thoughts through their noisy social media accounts. Some of them scolded the players for, once again, failing to win. But many more threw their weight behind the team, believing that they would be able to perform better on another international stage. Our men’s doubles players received praise for their superb performances while our men’s singles players — mostly first-time Thomas Cup finalists — were encouraged to improve themselves.

The Thomas and Uber Cup team manager Rexy Mainaky deserves credit for his courage in deploying young inexperienced players — especially in the singles — in such an important match. Combining them with our much more mature and experienced doubles players, the team fulfilled the expectations to reach the final.

It was Indonesia’s first appearance in the finals since 2010, losing then to eventual champion China.

The last time Indonesia — holding the record for 13 titles — won the Thomas Cup was in 2002 in Guangzhou, overcoming archrival Malaysia.

It was a different story in the Uber Cup. Our women shuttlers were only able to reach the semifinals but it was a realistic target.

Regardless of the results, there is nothing to regret. It is another wake-up call for the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI) to be more aggressive in discovering new and talented athletes as well as grooming them to reach world-class level.

For now, the PBSI must focus on the nearest challenges — the Indonesia Open in Jakarta next week and the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in August.

Rexy, also PBSI’s development division head, said earlier that the seven-day tournament would be the best opportunity to evaluate shuttlers’ performances prior to the Olympics.

The SuperSeries tournament will also be a chance to help boost the skills and confidence of national second-layer players and to increase their experience in dealing with the pressure on the court.

Indonesia has secured 10 Olympic tickets; in the names of Tommy Sugiarto in the men’s singles, Lindaweni Fanetri in the women’s singles, Hendra Setiawan and Mohammad Ahsan in the men’s doubles, Greysia Polii and Nitya Krishinda Maheswari in the women’s doubles as well as Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir and Praveen Jordan and Debby Susanto in the mixed doubles.

Indonesia hopes to win medals at the Rio Olympics after returning empty-handed from the London Olympics four years ago. The badminton competition itself was also marred by the disqualification of eight women’s doubles players including Indonesians Greysia Polii and her then partner Meiliana Jauhari.

Indonesia was fortunate to remain in the medal tally as the national weightlifters managed to snatch a silver and a bronze.

Youth and Sports Minister Imam Nahrawi urged the PBSI to pay more attention to future singles matches. “The PBSI must be more observant and detailed in handling the training of athletes,” he said, responding to the Thomas Cup final result.

Athletes are not the only party that needs upgrading. It is time for the PBSI to also upgrade the skills and knowledge of coaches nationwide. There are many badminton clubs scattered across the archipelago and their level of expertise is variable.

Indonesia has sent coaches to different countries and those countries have been able to upgrade the level of their players.

The PBSI, the government and the public have their own role to play in continuing the legacy of our badminton heroes. The stakeholders can work together to improve the development of badminton and sports in general.

With better international achievements, badminton can be a powerful tool to motivate Indonesians to exercise more and live healthy lives. In the end, it can boost our pride as a nation, too, just as Sambas used to do when he reported live from the court.