Anthony Still Looking for Victory

SHENZHEN, WEDNESDAY — The China Masters BWF World Tour Super 750 is the fifth tournament for Anthony Sinisuka Ginting after recovering from injury. His performance on the court demonstrates his determination to compete again, even though it has not yet resulted in a victory.

The defeat in the first round of the China Masters marked the fifth consecutive loss since he returned to competition in July. At the Shenzhen Arena, on Wednesday (17/9/2025), Anthony lost to Malaysian player Leong Jun Hao with a score of 19-21, 21-5, 10-21.

In the previous two matches, on different courts, Alwi Farhan lost to the fourth-seeded home athlete, Li Shi Feng, with scores of 6-21, 9-21. Thus, none of the men's singles players from the national training center were able to pass the first hurdle.

This number also depends on Jonatan Christie, who avenged his defeat against Kenta Nishimoto. Jonatan, who is no longer part of the Indonesian badminton national training center, defeated the Japanese representative with a score of 21-19, 21-19, marking a revenge for his loss in the first round of the Japan Open in July.

At the Shenzhen Arena, Anthony was slower than his opponent in anticipating the direction and speed of the wind when switching sides of the court. This caused him to lose the first game, although he managed to close the gap to a score of 19-19 after trailing 8-14. In the third game, Anthony fell behind significantly from the start, making it difficult for him to turn the situation around.

This result marks a first-round defeat for Anthony for the fifth consecutive time since his "comeback" in the Japan Open tournament. Following Japan, he lost in the early rounds of the China Open, the World Championship in France, the Hong Kong Open, and the China Masters.

Before appearing in Japan, Anthony took a six-month break from tournaments due to a right shoulder injury. He only competed in the Malaysia Open at the beginning of the year.

Although he has been able to play three games in the last three matches, the bronze medalist of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics stated that he has not yet reached the desired performance level as he did before the injury. The 28-year-old athlete last reached the final at the All England in March 2024, where he was defeated by Jonatan.

"I never imagined that after my comeback, I wouldn't have tasted victory. But there's still work to be done because even in this fifth tournament, my feel and playing style aren't what they used to be," Anthony said.

After the China Masters, Anthony is registered for the next tournament, the Korea Open, from September 23 to 28. In the following month, he will also compete in the European Tour, specifically at the Denmark and France Opens.

The men's singles coach of the national training center, Indra Widjaja, praised Anthony's determination to return to the BWF competition before the World Championship. Indra observed Anthony's strong resolve through the attitude he displayed during training and matches.

However, as Anthony stated, he still needs to sharpen his competitive spirit and adaptability on the field to re-enter the highly open men's singles competition. Anthony requires victories to earn ranking points in order to improve his position after a long absence.

Currently, he is ranked 88th, below five other Indonesian men's singles players, namely Jonatan, Alwi, Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo, Prahdiska Bagas Shujiwo, and Mohammad Zaki Ubaidillah. Anthony can still participate in Super 750 and 1000 tournaments that do not use a qualification round system; however, if his ranking continues to decline, he will lose that opportunity and will have to qualify for Super 500 tournaments and below.

The same condition as Anthony was experienced by former world number one athlete, Viktor Axelsen. The gold medalist of the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics lost in the first round of the Hong Kong Open in his first tournament after the All England in March. Axelsen did not compete due to a back injury that required surgery.

At the China Masters, he nearly faced elimination in the early match after losing the first game and trailing 9-16 in the second game against Wang Zheng Xing. Axelsen ultimately secured his first victory with a score of 16-21, 21-17, 21-11.

Mixed doubles pair, Jafar Hidayatullah/Felisha Alberta Nathaniel Pasaribu, finally redeemed their disappointment after having lost in two previous encounters against Hiroki Midorikawa/Natsu Saito. They defeated the Japanese pair with a score of 23-21, 21-17.

The victory compensated for the regrets of Jafar/Felisha for losing in the semifinals of the Asian Championship and the second round of the Indonesia Open. "Thank God, we are grateful to have passed the first round with a win. This is our first victory after two previous encounters where we suffered disappointing losses," said Felisha.

In the previous two meetings, Jafar/Felisha actually had a great chance to win, but they always fell short at critical moments. After winning the first game, they created a match point, 21-20, in the second game at the Asian Championship, but ultimately lost 21-15, 21-23, 11-21.

At the meeting in Istora Gelora Bung Karno, Jakarta, Jafar/Felisha once again had the opportunity to win when they led 14-9 to 18-15 in the third game. However, the number one mixed doubles pair from Indonesia lost 21-23, 21-14, 20-22 after competing for one hour and 14 minutes.

Felisha stated that the victory at the China Masters was achieved by being able to perform better in anticipating the opponent's game. However, they must reduce mistakes when in a receiving position.

Jafar also assessed that his performance has not been optimal after competing in the World Championship in France, from August 25 to 31, due to an injury. He sustained a left ankle injury during training at the national training center in Cipayung, Jakarta, about a week before appearing in Paris.

The two young Indonesian players are targeting to perform better when facing Chen Tang Jie/Toh Ee Wei in the second round on Thursday. In their three encounters with the third-seeded Malaysian pair, Jafar/Felisha have always lost, including in the third round of the World Championship. In that prestigious individual championship, Chen/Toh ultimately emerged as the champions.

Amri Syahnawi/Nita Violina Marwah also won the first round when facing Callum Hemming/Estelle Van Leeuwen. They won 21-17, 21-13 to compete against the seventh-seeded home representatives, Guo Xin Wa/Chen Fang Hui.

Meanwhile, Adnan Maulana/Indah Cahya Sari Jamil could not perform consistently after reaching the semifinals of the Hong Kong Open. They were eliminated by Hoo Pang Ron/Chen Su Yin with scores of 6-21, 14-21 in the first round.