East Java: Women’s singles No. 3 seed Tee Jing Yi and unseeded Indonesian Gregoria Mariska advanced to the Indonesia International Challenge final in contrasting fashion on Saturday. Both shuttlers will set up a fight of their title-deciding clash on Sunday.
Malaysian Tee, eased into the women’s singles final by beating unseeded Kim Na Young 21-18, 21-8 in 35 minutes.
On the other hand, Gregoria Mariska was forced to work hard to seal her progression through to the final. She was taken to three sets before breaking back to edge out compatriot Hera Desi 15-21, 21-17, 21-17 in 60 minutes to reach the final.
In men’s singles, the 2004 Olympic bronze medalist Sony Dwi Kuncoro saw off a tough challenge from Malaysian shuttler Soo Teck Zhi, coming out on top with a straight set 21-18, 21-18 victory.
Kuncoro admitted that he had a hard time returning hard smashes from Soo in the semi-finals.
“Soo managed to score many points through his smashes. However, the Malaysian was little less stable and I was able to read his moves. I was able to take advantage of Soo’s lack of emotional control in his several desperate attempts to win the match,” said Kuncoro.
When asked about the preparation for the final tomorrow, Kuncoro said he doesn’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, because he has never played South Korean Jeon Hyeok-Jin before.
Meanwhile, Jeon Hyeok-Jin defeated Indonesian Reksy Aureza Megananda 21-13, 22-20 to book a place in Sunday’s championship match at the Sudirman Badminton Hall.
