Two years ago, the Indonesian men’s team had their hearts broken when deciding player Ihsan Maulana Mustafa failed to beat Hans-Kristian Vittinghus in the final round of the Thomas Cup, letting the trophy slip away to Denmark.

Ihsan was defeated 21-15, 21-7 by the Danish number three.

Indonesia, which was so close to winning its 14th Thomas Cup title since its last victory in 2002, had to deal with another bitter ending.

For this year’s edition, the Indonesian team is ready to write a different story. The Thomas and Uber Cup will be held at the IMPACT Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, from May 20 to 27.

Backed by former world number one pair Hendra Setiawan and Muhammad Ahsan, Ihsan and the whole gang are in prime condition to end the country’s title drought.

The Red-and-White men’s squad will see Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, Jonatan Christie, Ihsan and Firman Abdul Kholik battling it out in the men’s singles category.

Meanwhile in the men’s doubles, Indonesia has the strong world number one pair, Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo and Marcus Fernaldi Gideon, who will be supported by second-seed pair Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto as well as the veterans Hendra and Ahsan.

In the round robin matches, Indonesia will face Canada, South Korea and Thailand in Group B.

The cup pits three matches in singles and two matches in doubles in the best-of-five round robin matches. However, in the knockout stage, the tournament applies best-of-three scoring, with a similar configuration in matches.

A confident Marcus, who won the prestigious All England Open with Kevin in March, revealed his take on how the team could win the title.

“Looking at the group drawing, [I think] we’re more advanced [comparing to other teams] based on our track record. But, we shouldn’t be negligent as we have to always be ready,” he said.

Kevin refused to call the 2016 failure as a haunting nightmare for the team. He made sure that the loss was in the past, and that this year’s edition is another journey to explore, especially with most of the competing teams being on the same level.

“The odds are equal in both winning and losing — no matter which team we face. [The 2016] defeat is no longer a problem for us,” said Kevin, who along with Marcus, has collected three titles this year.

Despite focusing on winning, the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI) has set a sensible target — to at least reach the final round.

Indonesia is the record holder with 13 titles, followed by China (9), Malaysia (5), Denmark (1) and Japan (1).

On the women’s side, the Indonesian Uber Cup squad not much as expected in the prestigious tournament.

In general, the PBSI wants Greysia Polii and the ladies “to do their best”. In the group stage, Indonesia will face China, France and Malaysia in Group D to seek a spot in the knockout rounds.

Nevertheless, PBSI sport development head Susy Susanti wants the team to push through to the semifinals.

Indonesia has won three titles in 1975, 1994 and 1996.

The last time Indonesia managed to bring home the trophy was when former world number one Susy and the team beat China 4-1 in the final.

In the 2008 Thomas and Uber Cup in Jakarta, the Indonesian women’s team surprised everyone by reaching the final round, but was beaten 3-0 by China. However, since then, the team has been struggling to return to the top level.

For the Bangkok showdown, Indonesia will be powered by young talent — namely Fitriani, Gregoria Mariska, Ruselli Hartawan and Dinar Dyah Ayustine — in the singles category. As for the doubles, Indonesia will deploy world number six pair Greysia Polii and Apriani Rahayu, world number 12 pair Della Destiara and Rizki Amelia as well as a new duo, Nitya Krishinda and Ni Ketut Mahadewi.

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