Thomas Indonesia Team Beware of Thailand

The Thai men's team is without a major strength in the Thomas and Uber Cup Championships. However, Indonesia must not be careless.

HUMAS PP PBSI

Jonatan Christie hit a shuttlecock during the match against Nadeem Dalvi (England) in the Group C preliminary round of the Thomas Cup on Saturday (27/4/2024) at the Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Centre Gymnasium, Chengdu, China. Jonatan won, 21-16, 21-12. Indonesia will face Thailand in the second Group C preliminary match of the Thomas Cup on Monday (29/4/2024).

CHENGDU, SUNDAY — The match against Thailand could be the key to Indonesia's continuation after the group stage in the competition for the Thomas Cup. Even without main power, Thailand must still be wary of, especially in the two doubles matches.

The Indonesian men's badminton team will face Thailand in the second qualifying match of Group C for the Thomas Cup at the Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium, Chengdu, China, Monday (29/4/2024) . This is the second match for both teams after Indonesia won 5-0 over England and Thailand lost 1-4 to India.

Also read: Initial Scenario Goes Well

The match, which will start at 08.30 WIB, could determine Indonesia's steps to qualify for the quarter-finals as the two best ranked teams in Group C. With participants consisting of 16 teams in the men's team and 16 teams in the women's team, the competition in the preliminary phase takes place in four groups with the format round robin. Only the top two ranked teams from each group will advance to the next round by knockout system.

The Indonesian and Thai Thomas Cup teams have been in the same group in the preliminaries since 2014 until now. In every meeting, Indonesia always wins but Thailand can steal victory in one or two matches.

HUMAS PP PBSI

Anthony Sinisuka Ginting hit a shuttlecock during the match against Harry Huang (England) in the Group C preliminary round of the Thomas Cup on Saturday (27/4/2024) at the Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Centre Gymnasium, Chengdu, China. Anthony won, 21-8, 21-15.

The fiercest competition took place at the 2020 Thomas Cup in Aarhus, Denmark, which was held in 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Indonesia won 3-2, with the final victory determined by Shesar Hiren Rhustavito in the fifth match. Shesar won after Indonesia and Thailand shared two victories.

Thai men's doubles have never played at Super 500 level or above. However, from the experience of seeing them at the 2021 and 2023 SEA Games, their game is quite good, especially in playing no lob and in front of the net.

Two other wins were contributed by Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo/Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto. Meanwhile Anthony Sinisuka Ginting and Jonatan Christie lost to Kantaphon Wangcharoen and Kunlavut Vitidsarn.

Also read: Emphasize Togetherness in Team Championships

In Chengdu, Indonesia will once again rely on Anthony, Jonatan, and Fajar/Rian. The difference will occur in the third singles match with the absence of Shesar who is not a member of the national badminton team in 2024. Shesar's position will be replaced by Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo or Alwi Farhan, as when Indonesia competed against England.

Thailand's formation also changed with the absence of senior players, Kantaphon Wangcharoen and Sitthikom Thammasin. Young players aged 22 and 19, Kunlavut Vitidsarn and Panitchaphon Teeraratsakul, will be the first and second singles, followed by Saran Jamsri.

KOMPAS/ADRYAN YOGA PARAMADWYA

Indonesian badminton player Anders Antonsen (left), shook hands with Thai badminton player Kunlavut Vitidsarn after competing in the semi-finals of the 2024 Indonesia Masters at the Istora Gelora Bung Karno, Jakarta, on Saturday (27/1/2024). Indonesia will face Thailand in the second match of Group C of the Thomas Cup preliminary round on Monday (29/4/2024).

Indonesia's lone player has a great chance of winning the second and third singles titles, but must prepare for tough competition from Vitidsarn. The world's eighth-ranked player became the 2023 world champion, after winning the same title three times at the junior level. Vitidsarn has an even meeting record of 3-3 with Anthony and is behind 3-6 to Jonatan.

Fierce competition can also occur in the doubles category even though Thailand is not reinforced by their best men's doubles pair, Supak Jomkoh/Kittinupong Kedren. Thailand relies on their third and fifth ranking pairs in the country to compete against Fajar/Rian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri/Bagas Maulana or Leo Rolly Carnando/Daniel Marthin.

Also read: Alwi Farhan Entered the Indonesian Thomas Cup Team

Unlike the Indonesian men's doubles, the two Thai pairs more often appear at smaller tournaments than at the BWF World Tour level. Nevertheless, their strength cannot be underestimated. Peeratchai Sukphun/Pakkapon Teeraratsakul put up a three-game fight when they met the Indian men's doubles ranked third in the world, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty.

“Thai men's doubles have never played at the Super 500 level and above. However, from the experience of seeing them at the 2021 and 2023 SEA Games, their game is quite good, especially in playing no lob and in front of the net. "Their game can be troublesome," said national training men's doubles coach, Aryono Miranat.

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Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto competed in a match against Ben Lane/Sean Vendy (England) during the group stage of the Thomas Cup on Saturday (27/4/2024), held at the Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Centre Gymnasium, Chengdu, China. Fajar/Rian won, 21-18, 21-12.

With opponents playing that kind of game, Indonesian men's doubles must be careful, especially in the game at the net which is key in doubles. Athletes who play as front players have a role as an attack organizer.

Indonesian Team Manager Ricky Soebagdja reminded Indonesia to remain alert in the second match even though they had won the first match on Saturday. A message was also conveyed to the women's team even though they will face Uganda, the weakest team in Group C. If the women's team wins over Uganda and Japan beats Hong Kong, Indonesia and Japan will qualify for the quarter-finals.

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"On paper, the Uber Indonesia team is superior to Uganda, but we must not be complacent as anything can happen on the field," said Ricky, who also indicated that players who were not fielded during the 5-0 victory over Hong Kong may have a chance to play against Uganda.

In the Sunday competition of the Thomas Cup Group B and Group D, strong teams won 5-0 against their respective opponents. Japan won against Czech Republic in Group B, while Denmark defeated Hong Kong in Group D.

AFP/STR

Viktor Axelsen (Denmark) shook hands with Lee Cheuk Yiu (Hong Kong) after the Group D preliminary match at Chengdu Hi Tech Zone Sports Centre Gymnasium in Chengdu, China on Sunday (28/4/2024).

The world's number one men's singles badminton player from Denmark, Viktor Axelsen, almost lost when facing Lee Cheuk Yiu, but he was able to overcome the pressure and win with a score of 21-14, 18-21, 21-19.

Also read: Momota will miss Viktor Axelsen and Anthony Sinisuka Ginting

"Lee is a player who has sharp attacks and talent. Every time I face him, the game is always difficult. However, today, I was able to seize the opportunity to score well towards the end of the match and I am happy to have done it," said Axelsen on the official BWF website.

Meanwhile, Kento Momota contributed victory for Japan as third singles. The former men's singles number one in the world seemed to enjoy the match when he faced Dominik Korpiva and won 21-9, 21-3 while smiling often. Momota made the 2024 Thomas and Uber Cup his last tournament at international level before retiring.