So, I was able to reunite with my long-time lover, badminton, through live broadcast of Indonesian Open SS 2012 matches. And really, I was sooo happy and reminded again how I love badminton. Yesterday, I could only watch one match, the semi final in mix-double category, and that was between Lilyana Natsir/Tontowi Ahmad (Indonesia) and Ma Jin/Xu Chen (China), which respectively the 3rd and 2nd best players in mixed double category world wide according to the current BWF ranking.
Vanya and me were both very unchill when we watched the match XD. Of course we support Indonesia, but both team played really, really well (Well, duh, with only knowing their current ranking you can imagine how hot the match will be)! Especially the rubber set. They both romped to get more points, with Lilyana/Tontowi were a little behind! And really, at one point, where they finally could equate score with China and the score was 16-16, I literally screamed in front of my TV. I think if I watched the game live from the stadium, I could go crazy. XD
But seriously! It was one hell of a match! Lilyana/Tontowi locked down China's score and went straight to 21-16. I felt like a proud mother.. :* They won at the last points! And that's how great they are, they could keep calm and strove for the best.
This is Lilyana Natsir and Tontowi Ahmad <3
After watching the match, I browsed the internet to know more about how they are currently doing. And wow, I was really surprised to know that they won the All England Championship back in March! Not to mention that they also have won another 2 super series this year. In one website, I read that it was Lilyana's dream to win the All England Championship, and finally she could accomplish her dream at 26 years old! And in one interview, Lilyana said that after winning the All England final, Tontowi still couldn't believe it and asked Lilyana "ci, beneran nih?" several times (Oh, how cute XD). Congratulations to the both of them!
Lilyana Natsir/Tontowi Ahmad, winning the All England Championship 2012
So of course I was really excited to watch the final today. I really root for them and to be honest I was so sure that they would win today, especially that they was off against unseeded team from Thailand. The commentators even said that the semifinal yesterday was like "the final that was too early".
And today I managed to watch the men's single final and the mixed double final. From the men's single final I got a new player to root for, Simon Santoso! Woot!! He really played brilliantly, and I was so crazy on supporting him with Fanny and Rika! Those smashes oh my God! And other techniques like netting and chop, he managed to execute them really well today. He excelled really fast in the first set. Even the commentators were amazed at how fast and how beautiful he played.
He was off against a Chinese player, Du Peng Yu. Yes, okay, his rival was not the greatest players on earth right now, namely Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei XD, but still Du Peng Yu is currently ranked 10th in the world's ranking, so obviously he is a player that is quite worthy to be against off. Simon Santoso's performance declined in the second set, but everything was paid off at the rubber set. He was back to the game and managed to close it with 21-13. Du Peng Yu couldn't do anything much to catch up with his lost really, and that is how amazing Simon was today. I really hope he can get a good result in London Olympics 2012 in a few months now, if not winning.
Simon Santoso, in the final of Indonesia Open Super Series 2012
But my adrenaline was at the highest when I watched the mixed double final. Yes, you probably have known the result that Indonesia failed to claim the gold medal. Unexpectedly, Lilyana/Tontowi lost! Oh my God, I was so surprised. I really believed that a miracle could happened when they were left behind at the rubber set, that they could catch up with the score, just like yesterday in the semi final. But no... when the score had become 20-13, I knew that it was impossible for Indonesia to catch up. And finally, they had to admit that the unseeded pair from Thailand was better than them in the rubber set with the final score 21-13.
I was quite devastated with the result since I was so sure this could be an easy win. Lilyana and Tontowi had never lost to this Thailand pair from the three meetings against them this year. But I guess I was too confident. I should have known that there must be something with this Thailand pair when they had succeeded defeating the currently FIRST RANK mixed double pair from China at the quarter-finals.
From the start of the game, the Thailand pair had shown full force offense and oppressing performance. And I don't know what happened to them, but Lilyana/Tontowi performance was a little bit off. They got carried away easily with the Sudkhet and Saralee's (the Thailand players) play.
I could understand that they had a lot of pressure to claim their fourth title this year so they couldn't play freely at this match, while the Thailand pair didn't have any pressure since they were even unseeded from the start. But let's not give any excuse. As Lilyana said in the interview regarding the lost, "Kami tidak mau banyak alasan. Mereka memang lebih unggul dari kami hari ini. Tampaknya mereka sedang pada top performanya.". Congratulations, Thailand, to Sudkhet and Saralee! You are worthy to be the winner based on your performance today.
P.S.: It's my opinion only, but I think the yesterday's match was better than today's final. Not because Indonesia won, but because both side played extremely well. In Indonesian words "Lebih greget aja".
Look at the bright side. At least with this lost, they can get a very good lesson. They can learn from their mistakes (yes, including improving their sometimes-messy-communication) and be even better next time, especially in London Olympics 2012. I think that at one point they became over confident with their winning streaks this year (Lilyana even admitted it herself in the interview), so this can be a good wake up call to them.
So yeah, I won't say that you guys have played well today, cause the fact is you guys didn't play that well XD. BUT, whatever the result is today, we are still VERY proud of you guys! (I still love you guys seriously <3). Lilyana Natsir and Tontowi Ahmad, THIS IS NOT THE END! All Indonesians will wait for you in the Olympics!! We will support you to no end!!
The siblings atmosphere between Owi and Butet (the nicknames of both Tontowi Ahmad and Lilyana Natsir)
Oh, just a little information, Lilyana Natsir is seriously a great player. She left school at the age of 12 years old to focus completely on playing badminton, after her coach in Manado said that she is very talented in it. She then moved to Jakarta all by herself at such young age to train seriously. Her determination and seriousness in playing badminton until now is something that I salute. You have a big fan here.
And now, I think she is the only Indonesian female player left that can give world-class performances. It is a real pity that Maria Kristin, a potential young female player that once won a bronze medal in women's single category in Beijing Olympics 2008, has been sent back to her training base because of her knee injury and declining performance. I think PBSI should have taken care of her seriously, and not taken the easy way by sending her back like that. Other than that, the female juniors right now somewhat haven't shown worthy plays to match the legends such as Susi Susanti, and don't have enough determination like Lilyana Natsir.
I just wish the best of luck to Indonesia's future in badminton, especially in women category, both single and double. Hope that there will be new players that can rise and substitute (or even better, surpass) the seniors.
Susi Susanti, upon winning the women's single category in Barcelona Olympics back in 1992
:Lilyana Natsir <3
Once again, congratulations, Simon Santoso for being the winner, and Lilyana Natsir/Tontowi Ahmad for being the runner up in Djarum Indonesia Open Super Series 2012! I will wait for all of you in London Olympics 2012! Hope you guys can give your best shot there!
Logo Olimpiade London 2012
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