Apriyani/Febi in the Process of Becoming a New Couple

KUALA LUMPUR, FRIDAY – For badminton doubles athletes, playing with a new partner requires a long process both on and off the court to become a solid pair. This is also what Apriyani Rahayu/Febi Setianingrum, the new formation of Indonesia's women's doubles, have been doing since they partnered in early May.

The formation of a duet between senior and young players is part of the search for a new women's doubles team in the Indonesian national badminton training center at the beginning of the 2024-2025 term of the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI). Apriyani, the gold medalist from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics alongside Greysia Polii, is now tasked with mentoring Febi (21), who has limited experience competing at the top level of the BWF World Tour.

Since competing together in May, the Malaysia Masters at Axiata Arena, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from May 20 to 25, has become the third tournament for Apriyani/Febi. They advanced to the semifinals after defeating the eighth-seeded pair from Taiwan, Hsu Yin Hui/Lin Jhih Yun, with a score of 18-21, 21-16, 21-9 in the quarterfinals on Friday (23/5/2025).

Before defeating Hsu/Lin, Apriyani/Febi eliminated another seeded pair in the first round, namely Li Yi Jing/Luo Xu Min (China/4), with scores of 11-21, 21-17, 21-19. In the semifinals on Saturday, they will challenge the world number one women's doubles pair from China, Liu Sheng Shu/Tan Ning.

The semifinals in this Super 500 level tournament mark the furthest journey for Apriyani/Febi compared to when they were eliminated in the second round of the Taiwan Open and the first round of the Thailand Open, two consecutive weeks prior. Nevertheless, as Apriyani stated, she and Febi continue to undergo a process to become a better women's doubles team, especially since they are still in the early stages of pairing.

In addition to on-field activities, this process is also carried out off the field through training and matches. "Our process of building bonds is not just for a month or two, and it is not only done during matches. Communication also takes place during training, and now it is quite intense because we share a room," said Apriyani after winning the quarterfinals at the Axiata Arena.

As a senior athlete with nine BWF World Tour titles and a finalist in the 2023 World Championships, Apriyani (27) now bears a dual responsibility. In addition to striving to recover after suffering from a right knee injury, she has the task of imparting knowledge and experience by partnering with younger players.

Therefore, when they had time together outside of the match, she and Febi discussed. "I shared a lot of information with Febi, and Febi also tried to communicate with me. I am trying to understand what Febi needs to know," said Apriyani.

At the Malaysia Masters, the effort to build this bond led them to the semifinals. This moment even marked Febi's first semifinal at the Super 500 level after previously reaching the final of the Taiwan Open Super 300 in 2024 alongside Jesita Putri Miantoro.

"I am grateful to have made it to the semifinals of the Super 500 tournament, but I am not satisfied because there are still matches," said Febi.

Apriyani/Febi ultimately became the only semifinalists from Indonesia. The other two women's doubles pairs were defeated in the quarterfinals. Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma/Amalia Cahaya Pratiwi lost to the home players, Pearly Tan/Thinaah Muralitharan, with scores of 14-21, 14-21.

Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti/Lanny Tria Mayasari forced the Chinese pair, Jia Yi Fan/Zhang Shu Xian, to play three games, but ultimately lost 15-21, 21-15, 14-21. Jia is one of the top women's doubles players in the world and the gold medalist in women's doubles at the Paris 2024 Olympics when partnered with Chen Qing Chen.

Fadia's exhausting journey did not end with the women's doubles. In the first session of the quarter-finals, her performance in the mixed doubles alongside Dejan Ferdinansyah was halted by another Chinese pair, Cheng Xing/Zhang Chi, with scores of 21-12, 20-22, 14-21. Dejan/Fadia actually had a great chance to win when they led 14-7 in the second game, but that opportunity slipped away due to numerous mistakes they made.

Putri Kusuma Wardani, as the remaining representative in the singles sector, also lost in the quarter-finals. For the fifth time, she was defeated by the Chinese player, Han Yue, with a score of 12-21, 13-21.

"My game was inconsistent and I made a lot of mistakes. Han Yue is like any other top ten player in the world, she doesn't make mistakes easily," Putri said.

After this, Putri, Dejan/Fadia, Febriana/Amalia, and Lanny have a week to prepare before competing in a larger tournament, the Indonesia Open Super 1000, in Jakarta, from June 3 to 8. In order to perform better at the Indonesia Open, Dejan/Fadia have also canceled their participation in the Singapore Open, from May 27 to June 1.

Moreover, Fadia has competed in four consecutive championships since the Sudirman Cup in China, from April 27 to May 4, specifically in the women's doubles and mixed doubles events.