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Jonatan upsets Lin Dan
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The local crowd gives a thundering round of applause when 18-year-old Jonatan Christie unexpectedly upset Chinese third-seeded player Lin Dan in the second round of the BCA Indonesia Open badminton championship at Bung Karno Indoor Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Thursday. (JP/Seto Wardhana)
T
span style="line-height: 1.6em;">The local crowd’s applause sounded like thunder when 18-year-old Jonatan Christie unexpectedly upset Chinese third-seeded player Lin Dan in the second round of the BCA Indonesia Open badminton championship at Bung Karno Indoor Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Thursday.
Jonatan could not hide his joy after defeating his own idol 21-12, 21-12, thanking his loyal fans for their continuous support.
“I thank all the amazing supporters. They succeeded in boosting my stamina throughout the match so I didn't feel tired,” he said.
He added that his strategy to face Lin Dan worked well. Lin Dan usually rallied before stealing points and he often lobbed but his strokes were not effective at Senayan — which has always been famous for its enthusiastic crowds. He personally preferred to play at a fast pace, Jonatan said.
Jonatan’s speed helped him to overcome Lin Dan, like when he defeated Chinese Taipei’s Hsu Jen Hao the previous day.
Jonatan had the upper hand as Lin Dan did not appear to like the Senayan environment, which may have affected his performance.
The Indonesian will now face Danish player Jan O. Jorgensen, who defeated Anthony Sinisuka Ginting on Wednesday.
Jonatan said that Jorgensen — who won the last point for Denmark against Indonesia in the Thomas Cup finals match recently — would not be affected by noisy supporters.
“I’ll ask Anthony about his experience in facing Jorgensen,” he said, adding that he would perform all-out in the quarterfinals. (yan)
