Uber Indonesia vs China Final: Gregoria Loses to Chen Yu Fei, Indonesia Behind 0-1

Indonesia trailed China 0-1 after Gregoria lost to Chen Yu Fei in the first match of the Uber Cup final.

HUMAS PP PBSI

The solo act of Gregoria Mariska Tunjung in the final match of the Uber Cup against Chen Yu Fei (China) at the Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Centre Gymnasium, China, on Sunday (5/5/2024). Gregoria lost with a score of 7-21, 16-21.

CHENGDU, SUNDAY — Indonesia is currently 0-1 behind hosts China in the Uber Cup final match at the Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium, China, Sunday (5/5/2024). Indonesia's first singles player, Gregoria Mariska Tunjung, had to admit the superiority of the host's mainstay Chen Yu Fei with a score of 7-21, 16-21.

Chen, who is ranked second in BWF, took the first point after a flawed net play from Gregoria. The home player took the next point before it was Gregoria's turn, who is ranked ninth, to earn a point after Chen's shot failed to cross the net.

Gregoria made a number of mistakes at the start of the match. Apart from hitting the net, several of his shots also went outside the court. Chen immediately led 5-2, with the final point he got after successfully completing the challenge.

Also read: Two "Red and White" Teams in the Final, Chance to Match Thomas and Uber Titles

In the early stages of the match, Chen also made several mistakes. Some of his hits hit the net or went out of bounds. Gregoria had the opportunity to equalize the score at 6-7. However, after being able to pressure Chen, her final hit was too hard and went out of bounds.

After that, Chen quickly distanced himself with difficult strikes, making it 11-6 for Gregoria. During the first interval, Gregoria briefly discussed with her coach and asked about the opponent's playing pattern. She gained the next point, but Chen returned with strikes that made it difficult for Gregoria to predict their direction.

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

Chinese badminton player Chen Yu Fei, while competing against Tai Tzu Ying from Taiwan at the Indonesia Open 2022 in Istora Gelora Bung Karno, Jakarta, on Saturday (18/6/2022).

Gregoria's mistakes made Chen feel like he was getting free points. Chen won the first game 21-7 in just 14 minutes. Chen only needs one match point to get the winning point.

I felt sad and disappointed because actually the moment of the Uber Cup final was one that I was looking forward to.

In the second game, Gregoria tried to put up a fight. For the first time in this match, Gregoria managed to take the lead after scoring the first point, and then leading 2-1. However, during the next point contest, her shot went out, resulting in the score becoming tied at 2-2.

Chen then took back the game and reversed the score, taking four consecutive points, before Gregoria got two consecutive points to make it 5-4.

Also read: Waiting for the Blessings of the "Underdog" Uber Indonesia Team in the Top Party

Gregoria tried to catch up and even managed to approach the opponent's score to 12-10. Only two points behind, Gregoria continued to try to keep up with Chen's game and did not allow the home player to lead too far.

HUMAS PP PBSI

The sole expression of Gregoria Mariska Tunjung's daughter during the final match of the Uber Cup against Chen Yu Fei (China) at Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium, China, on Sunday (5/5/2024). Gregoria was defeated with a score of 7-21, 16-21.

When the score was 13-11, Gregoria won a long rally with a cross-court smash that Chen could not reach, making the score 13-12. Unfortunately, her chance to tie the score vanished when her shot caught the net.

Several times Gregoria had the opportunity to equalize the position. However, Gregoria's hits often went wide, resulting in additional points for the opponent. Chen was also able to widen the point gap that Gregoria could no longer catch up to. Chen secured the victory after Gregoria's smash went wide. Chen won the second game with a score of 21-16.

"First, I want to apologize to the whole team because I didn't show good gameplay today. As can be seen, the first game was very uncomfortable and I was not confident with what I wanted to show," said Gregoria after the match.

"I have tried my best in the second game but it couldn't make me win. It's sad and disappointing because actually the moment of the Uber Cup final is one that I have been waiting for," she continued.

HUMAS PP PBSI

The sole expression of Gregoria Mariska Tunjung's daughter during the final match of the Uber Cup against Chen Yu Fei (China) at Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium, China, on Sunday (5/5/2024). Gregoria was defeated with a score of 7-21, 16-21.

In this final match, Indonesia fielded Gregoria as the first single player, followed by Ester Nurumi Tri Wardoyo and Komang Ayu Cahya Dewi. As for the doubles, Indonesia fielded impromptu pairs Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti/Ribka Sugiarto and Lanny Tria Mayasari/Rachel Allessya Rose. Fadia had to partner with Ribka because her regular partner, Apriyani Rahayu, had not recovered from injury.

Ester will face He Bing Jiao who is ranked sixth, while Komang will compete against Yue Han who holds the seventh rank. The Fafia/Ribka pair will meet the world's number one women's doubles Chen Qing Chen/Jia Yi Fan, while Lanny/Rachel will face Liu Sheng Shu/Zhang Shu Xian.

The issue of air pollution is not new. The situation where communities are threatened by air pollution has been ongoing for a long time. There is no shortage of research evidence indicating the threats of air pollution's impact as well. However, this still has not been able to significantly push for efforts in controlling air pollution. Consequently, residents suffer greatly from living amidst air pollution. This year's Piala Uber final marks the 11th time for Indonesia's women's team, but they have only won twice, namely in 1994 in Jakarta and 1996 in Hong Kong. This is Indonesia's first final since 2008. The Red and White women's team advanced to the final after eliminating defending champion South Korea with a score of 3-2.

As for the host country China, they have already become champions 15 times and this is their 20th appearance in the final of Uber Cup in the last 21 editions. The host reached the final by defeating Japan 3-0 in the semifinals.

In the final competition, the strength of China's elite players will be tested by Gregoria and his friends as underdogs. Together with China and Japan, South Korea and Thailand have always been part of the four best teams in the 2018, 2020 and 2022 Uber Cup.