Megawati "Megatron" Hangestri Becomes "Bumi Sriwijaya" Volleyball Magnet

With Megawati's presence, it is hoped that the home audience will not only enliven the Palembang Bank SumselBabel team's match.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

The smashes action launched by Indonesian female volleyball player Megawati Hangestri Pertiwi, who strengthens the Red Sparks Korea team, during a friendly match Fun Volley Ball against the Indonesian All Star women's volleyball team at the Indonesia Arena Stadium, Gelora Bung Karno Complex, Jakarta, on Saturday (20/4/2024).

PALEMBANG, KOMPAS — The attraction of national female volleyball player Megawati Hangestri Pertiwi is expected to become a magnet for the Proliga 2024 series in Palembang, South Sumatra, during 9-12 May. So far, Palembang spectators tend to only support the home team, namely the men's team Palembang Bank SumselBabel. However, with the presence of Megawati, nicknamed "Megatron", the home audience is expected to enliven all the matches on "Bumi Sriwijaya".

Proliga Deputy Director Reginald Nelwan at a press conference in Palembang, Wednesday (8/5/2024), said that Megawati's sensational action while defending the South Korean League volleyball club, Daejeon CheongKwanJang Red Sparks, has had a positive effect on the world of Indonesian volleyball. At least, in the two previous series, namely in Yogyakarta on April 25-28 and in Semarang, Central Java, on May 2-5, the number of spectators was much larger.

Also read: Megawati Hangestri Pertiwi Looks at Second Season in Korea

Usually, viewers in each series only want to watch or support their respective home teams. However, in the two previous series, the audience actually enlivened almost every match, especially when Megawati, who now defends the Jakarta BIN women's team, played.

"Megawati has become the new spirit of Indonesian volleyball. Her positive performance during her time in South Korea has made the general public curious to see her action firsthand. Inadvertently, Megawati also helped attract new enthusiasts to volleyball," said Reginald, who is commonly called Regi.

KOMPAS/ADRIAN FAJRIANSYAH

The atmosphere at the press conference for the Proliga 2024 series in Palembang, South Sumatra, on Wednesday (8/5/2024) was lively. The national women's volleyball star Megawati Hangestri Pertiwi is expected to be the main attraction at the Proliga 2024 series in Palembang, South Sumatra, from May 9-12.

According to Regi, in the Palembang series, they hope that Megawati's attractiveness and the positive performance of Palembang Bank SumselBabel in the two previous series can increase audience enthusiasm in Bumi Sriwijaya. At the very least, those positive signs began to appear when Megawati uploaded her photo with the Ampera Bridge background in Palembang on Sunday (5/5/2024), four days before the Palembang series.

The photo was also reposted by several Instagram accounts in Palembang. Positive comments were scattered. Most of the comments contained the curiosity of Palembang residents to witness Megawati's performance firsthand.

In general, the phenomenon will have a positive impact on the future of Proliga and Indonesian volleyball. Now, many people who previously did not know about volleyball are interested in watching it. From an industry perspective, this will further enliven Proliga. From a development perspective, it is hoped to help bring about the birth of new volleyball players.

"As a whole, the phenomenon will have a positive impact on the future of Proliga and Indonesian volleyball. Now, many residents who were previously unfamiliar with volleyball have become interested in watching it. Industrially, it will further enliven Proliga. In terms of development, it is hoped that it can help create new volleyball athletes," said Regi.

The host's determination

Host team Palembang Bank SumselBabel is determined to maintain the positive trend that they have achieved in the previous two rounds. Out of the three games that have been played, Bank SumselBabel surprisingly managed to defeat Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi 3-1 (25-23, 25-22, 26-28, 25-19) on April 27 and win 3-2 (25-20, 19-25, 25-22, 21-25, 15-11) against Jakarta STIN BIN on May 4. However, they suffered a loss against defending champions Jakarta Lavani Allo Bank Electric 0-3 (24-26, 23-25, 19-25) on April 28.

HUMAS PROLIGA

The match between Jakarta BNI 46 (blue) and Palembang Bank SumselBabel (red) in the eighth series or the last series of the preliminary round of PLN Mobile Proliga 2022 took place at Padepokan Bola Voli Sentul, West Java, on Sunday (6/3/2022).

With those two victories, Bank SumselBabel is now in fourth place out of the seven participants with a score of 5 points. They are behind STIN BIN at the top of the standings with 10 points, Lavani Allo Bank Electric in second place with 9 points, and Jakarta Pertamina Pertamax in third place with 6 points. In the Palembang series, Bank SumselBabel will face off against Pertamina Pertamax on May 10th and Kudus Sukun Badak on May 12th.

Bank SumselBabel's slick game cannot be separated from the big contribution of its two foreign players, namely outside hitter from Iran Armin Afshin Far and opposition from Morocco, Mohammed Al Hachdadi. Bank SumselBabel Manager Alijoni hopes that, with the support of the home crowd, Bank SumselBabel can maintain this positive trend to maintain its hopes of qualifying for the final four. "We hope that the public can provide full support for Bank SumselBabel here so that we can sweep the two matches with a win," he said.

Also read: Time for the 2024 Pro League to Take Advantage of Volleyball Enthusiasm

Bank SumselBabel coach Iwan Dedi said that his team was ready to fight to win two wins in this series. ”Practically, the only opposite Imam Ahmad Faisal is not at 100 percent for this series because he suffered an ankle injury during yesterday's training. "Other than that, all players are ready to give their best game," he said.

Director of Main Bank SumselBabel Achmad Syamsudin said that there were two things that were his party's main targets in the Palembang series. First, they hope that this series will be more lively than the previous two series. "Hopefully, with the presence of a number of national and foreign volleyball stars, such as Megawati, the enthusiasm of the audience here will be much greater," he said.

KOMPAS/ADRIAN FAJRIANSYAH

Press conference of Proliga 2024 series in Palembang, South Sumatra, was held on Wednesday (8/5/2024). The national women's volleyball player, Megawati Hangestri Pertiwi, is expected to become a magnet for Proliga 2024 series in Palembang, South Sumatra, from 9th to 12th May.

Secondly, Syamsudin hopes that Bank SumselBabel can achieve better performance than last season, where they ranked seventh out of eight participants in the final standings. "Unlike last season, this time we rely heavily on young players. Coupled with two quality foreign players, hopefully Bank SumselBabel can achieve better results," he said.