ALL ENGLAND 2016 SF – Last Indonesians still big hope for finals

Zhang Nan / Zhao Yunlei failed to defend their All England title from last year as they suffered their first loss to Indonesia’s Praveen Jordan / Debby Susanto.

Story: Naomi Indartiningrum, Badzine Correspondent live in Birmingham
Photos: Badmintonphoto (live)

Being the last Indonesian representatives in Birmingham was not enough to make Praveen Jordan and Debby Susanto (pictured) tremble.  From the first game, both pairs tried to attack each other continuously.  Jordan, who took responsibility for the back court, succeeded in gaining many points with his fast smash and the world #8 pair took the first game 21-19 after a line-call challenge by Zhang Nan was unsuccessful.

Not wanting to trifle away the chance, the Indonesians started the second game more aggressively and finally they won 21-16. The hope the Indonesians expressed, right after their quarter-final, to beat the Chinese finally came true.  After meeting 7 times before and coming away with a few near misses, they made it this time, in the 8th meeting with the Olympic, All England, and World Champions.

“There is no difference from yesterday but maybe today we enjoyed the match more than yesterday’s,” said Debby Susanto after their win. “Winning this match is very meaningful for us.  Like I said yesterday, no matter how many times we won or lost against them, once we are on the court, everybody has a chance to win.  Of course we got confidence and our motivation for tomorrow’s match.”

On the other hand, the Chinese couldn’t hold their disappointment after lost today’s match.  Zhao Yunlei said that basically this loss wasn’t caused by their performance in other categories, even though both she and Zhang Nan (pictured bottom) had already suffered upsets in their level doubles quarter-finals.

For the final, Jordan and Susanto will be facing the strong pair from Denmark, Joachim Fischer/Christinna Pedersen.  The Danes continue their path to final after shutting down home favourites Chris and Gabrielle Adcock in the other semi-final.

“For tomorrow, we don’t have any specific strategy because they are just the same as before.  I think we need to improve our mental preparation for tomorrow, to try to enjoy it as much as we can, and try not to feel the pressure and add more motivation to win the title,” added Debby Susanto with a big, hopeful smile.

Click here for complete semi-final results