Men\'s Doubles Domination Good Preparation for Tokyo
Indonesia and China showed their dominance of the men\'s doubles and mixed doubles games, respectively. This is a good start for their hunt for medals in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
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CHANGZHOU, SUNDAY — The three BWF World Tour Super 1000 tournaments of 2019 ended with the completion of the China Open on Sunday (22/9/2019). Indonesia and China showed their dominance of the men\'s doubles and mixed doubles games, respectively. This is a good start for their hunt for medals in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Indonesia brings home a title through the world\'s No. 1 men\'s pair Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo and Marcus Fernaldi Gideon. They defeated another Indonesian world-champion pair Hendra Setiawan and Mohammad Ahsan, 21-18, 17-21, 21-15 at the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium in Changzhou.
Kevin and Marcus said they were grateful for the win despite not being in their best form. "Today, I was not at my best and my opponents are experienced. Ahsan could go to the finals despite having an injury," Marcus said, as quoted by the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI) website.
Throughout the China Open, Ahsan was suffering from pain in his calves. Because of this, Hendra and Ahsanhas decided to withdraw from the Korea Masters this week.
The China Open title complements Indonesia\'s men\'s doubles titles from the All England and Indonesia Open tournaments. In BWF\'s tournament calendar, only these three are listed in the Super 1000 category. Other than team tournaments, only the World Championships and the Olympics are above these three.
The China Open finals were the second all-Indonesian finals this year after the Indonesia Open in July. At the time, Kevin and Marcus also defeated Hendra and Ahsan. In the All England in March, Hendra and Ahsan emerged as victors.
Hendra and Ahsan are the only Indonesian shuttlers who played at the finals of all BWF Super 1000 tournaments this year. They complement this with their world championship title. These achievements are great for preparing Indonesia\'s men\'s doubles team to go to the Olympics, so long as its members are able to maintain their performance in the year ahead.
”Competition in men\'s doubles has been tight since the start, especially at the Super 1000. I salute all Indonesian players for their high level of confidence and motivation. However, we must not be complacent for the Olympics," said Aryono Miranat, who accompanied the men\'s doubles team to Changzou.
China, meanwhile, dominated the mixed doubles games. World No. 1 pair Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong won in all Super 1000 tournaments and also the World Championship. China also has world No. 2 pair Wang Yilyu and Huang Dongping. Both pairs increase China\'s opportunity to snatch gold in Tokyo in 2020.
Indonesia\'s chance to win a second gold in the China Open ended after Anthony Sinisuka Ginting was defeated by Japan\'s Kento Momota in men\'s singles. The 90-minute game was the most tense in the finals in Changzhou. Momota won 19-21, 21-17, 21-19, in a repeat of the 2018 finals.Meanwhile, Spain\'s Carolina Marin won in women\'s singles, her first title after an eight-month rest for a knee injury. Marin defeated Tai Tzu Ying, 14-21, 21-17, 21-18. Meanwhile, China\'s Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan won in women\'s doubles. (IYA)