INDONESIA OPEN 2013 R16 – Chinese women stand strong

After  suffering numerous first-round upsets, China spent Day 4 of the Djarum Indonesia Open Superseries Premier winning all but one match, with particular success in women’s doubles, where all 4 representatives are still involved.

By Mathilde Liliana Perada, Badzine Correspondent live in Jakarta.  Photos: Yves Lacroix for Badmintonphoto (live)

Top-seeded, Wang Xiaoli and Yu Yang (pictured right) have yet to lose even a game in this  tournament.  Even if they came close to sustaining such a blemish to their record in their second round match against two-time World Junior Champions Lee So Hee / Shin Seung Chan, they finished confidently and decisively. They look strong indeed to defend their title.

As is normal, Wang/Yu’s biggest challenge comes from within their own team itself. Tian Qing and Zhao Yunlei (pictured below), who were runners-up last year shortly before taking the Olympic gold, are performing very well and look set to produce a repeat of last year’s final.  Athough they were separated about six months, Zhao Yunlei said it’s a common thing for them to change partners and come back with former partners.

“It’s not too difficult for us to find back our chemistry on the court,” said Zhao Yunlei.

Another strong women’s doubles threat comes from Ma Jin / Tang Jinhua. In addition to obtaining good results in mixed doubles, Ma Jin has once again become a double threat to her opponents in women’s doubles, too.

After facing Pia Zebadiah and Markis Kido in the second round of mixed, Ma will face only the one sibling in Friday’s women’s doubles quarter-final. The two pairs met in the All England this year and the Chinese won easily, but it may be not as easy this time because the home supporters will be another important factor to the outcome of the match.

Bao Yixin / Cheng Shu (pictured top) round out the Chinese threat, which actuall places one pair in each of the four quarter-final matches. Both players have been shuffled around with several different partners in the two years since they won the Canada Open title together but they got back together to defeat another new pairing, Reika Kakiiwa / Miyuki Maeda on Thursday. In the quarter-finals, Bao/Cheng will face another pair of home favourites, Thailand Open champions Nitya Krishinda Maheswari / Greysia Polii.

Koreans favourites in men’s doubles

Korean pair, Shin Baek Cheol / Yoo Yeon Seong (pictured) advanced to the Indonesia Open quarter-finals with a win over the top Thai pair just four days after winning the Thailand Open last week. They have made a stunning appearance since the first match of this tournament, when they won another tight one against China’s Guo Zhendong / Shen Ye. Maneepong Jongjit / Nipitphon Puangpuapech confessed that Shin/Yoo are good both on defense and attack. The Korean played tidy, made few mistakes, and kept on frustrating the Thai pair. Maneepong Jongjit said that major factor in their defeat was unforced errors.

Korea’s other surviving men’s doubles pair, Ko Sung Hyun / Lee Yong Dae, have been lucky enough to enjoy performing in the Istora Senayan with the full of support of their fans, of whom they have many in Indonesia. The noise level in the arena begins to rise whenever they’re about to play. Yong Dae said that he is very grateful for the support. This increases their confidence on the court. They want to focus in every single match they play and Lee Yong Dae would particularly like to defend his title with his new partner. Lee Yong Dae got his second Indonesia Open title last year with Jung Jae Sung.

Click here for complete Thursday results