Japan, Indonesia set up semifinal clash in Sudirman Cup
0 Comment(s)
Print
E-mail Xinhua, May 25, 2019
Title favorites Japan swept Malaysia 3-0 and Indonesia edged Chinese Taipei 3-2 in the Sudirman Cup quarterfinals here on Friday.
Japan, who are seeking their first ever Sudirman title, will play Indonesia in the semifinals on Saturday.
World No. 2 Takeshi Kamura and Keigo Sonoda gave Japan the opening point by overturning Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi 13-21, 26-24, 23-21 in 95 minutes in the men's doubles.
Japan then built a 2-0 lead as the second-ranked Nozomi Okuhara eased past Soniia Cheah 21-16, 21-13 in the women's singles, before world No. 1 Kento Momota sealed victory in the men's singles by defeating Lee Zii Jia 21-18, 21-16.
"Though I won, I don't think I played my best. In the semifinals, I want to forget about being world's No. 1 and just focus on the match," said Momota.
Chinese Taipei lost out in a seesaw battle against Indonesia, who won the Sudirman Cup for the only time when it hosted the inaugural tournament in 1989.
The tie opened with the men's doubles, as world No. 1 Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo beat Indonesia's Lee Yang and Wang Chi Lin 21-17, 21-17.
Chinese Taipei leveled up through the women's singles, where top-ranked Tai Tzu Ying overwhelmed Mariska Tunjung 21-16, 21-14, before fourth-ranked Chou Tien Chen gave Chinese Taipei a 2-1 lead after seeing off Jonatan Christie 21-11, 21-13 in the men's singles.
Indonesia fought back in the women's doubles, before winning the overall tie through Praveen Jordan and Melati Daeva Oktavianti, who downed Hsieh Pei Shan and Wang Chi Lin 21-17, 21-15 in the mixed doubles.
"I felt a little bit nervous before the match, but when it started, I just focused on the court and forgot that it was the deciding match," Oktavianti said.
Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)