Surabaya: World No. 248 Selvaduray Kisona of Malaysia completed her Cinderella run in the 2017 Indonesia International Challenge Sunday, topping No. 3 seed and World No. 82 Gregoria Mariska Tunjung of Indonesia 10-21, 21-16, 21-19 to win her maiden international title by notching up a hard-fought 3-set thriller in 60 minutes.
The championship was very important milestone for Kisona’s career after a “dark” three-year battle with knee and ankle injury. Most importantly, Kisona would like to dedicate this championship to her mother S. Valarmathi in conjunction with Mother’s Day.
“This is my first championship, and it has boosted my confidence. I will continue to work hard, because there’s still a long journey ahead of me,” said Kisona.
“Furthermore, in celebration of Mother’s Day, I would like to dedicate this victory to my mother. She is the one who is always support me all these years,” added Kisona.
There was double joy for Malaysia camp as Soong Fie Cho/Tee Jing Yi also claimed the women’s doubles title at the Indonesia International Challenge Title.
Soong/Tee got off to a strong start to win the first set against Indonesia’s No. 2 seeds Dian Fitriani/Nadya Melati 21-16. The Indonesian crowd was so loud that it came as a great challenge for Soong/Tee as the Malaysian pair lost the second set 16-21.
In an incredible decider, Soong/Tee manage to close out the nail-biting set by winning the rubber game 21-19.
This was also the Malaysian pair’s first international title after being paired together early May.
In an all-Indonesian men’s singles final, No. 2 seed Shesar Hiren Rhustavito barely broke a sweat as Dionysius Hayom Rumbaka was forced to retire after trailing 4-11 in the first set.
Indonesia’s No. 8 seeds Wahyu Nayaka Arya Pangkaryanira/Ade Yusuf Santoso defeated teammates No. 6 seeds Kenas Adi Haryanto/Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani for the men’s doubles crown, while unseeded Ou Xuanyi/Liu Lin of China outlasted No. 3 seeds Lukhi Apri Nugroho/Ririn Amelia of Indonesia 22-20, 21-11 to claim the mixed doubles title.
