Indonesia's Two Targets in the Sudirman Cup

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Indonesia will face tough challenges from the early stages in the mixed team badminton championship, the 2025 Sudirman Cup. Young athletes will join forces with senior players to achieve two targets.

The Head of the Achievement Development Division of PP PBSI, Eng Hian, stated the podium target for the Indonesian Team competing in Xiamen, China, from April 27 to May 4. This means Indonesia must reach, at minimum, the semifinals—a result not achieved in Vantaa (Finland) in 2021 and Suzhou (China) in 2023. In those two events, Indonesia was eliminated in the quarterfinals after losing to Malaysia in 2021 and to China two years later.

In Xiamen, the seventh city in China to host the Sudirman Cup, PP PBSI aims for a podium finish similar to what Indonesia achieved in Nanning, China, in 2019. After defeating Taiwan in the quarterfinals, Indonesia's progress was halted by Japan in the semifinals.

To achieve similar results, the challenge for Indonesia in Xiamen will be very tough since the group stage. This phase is followed by 16 teams divided into four groups. Each team competes in a round robin format to reach the top two rankings of each group as a requirement to qualify for the quarter-finals.

Indonesia is in Group D alongside Denmark, India, and England. This group is considered the most competitive as at least three teams—Indonesia, Denmark, and India—possess equal strength.

The flagship numbers of the three teams overlap, namely men's singles and doubles. India has an additional strength in women's singles with the presence of Pusarla V Sindhu, which Indonesia also possesses (Gregoria Mariska Tunjung). Meanwhile, Denmark has another strong point in the mixed doubles category.

Thus, even though Indonesia is the second seed based on the accumulated points of the best-ranked players in each category, it will not be easy for Indonesia to secure a top-two position in Group D. Moreover, the achievements of Indonesian badminton players throughout 2025 have been below those of many other countries.

Out of nine BWF tournaments ranging from Super 100 to Super 1000, the "Red and White" athletes secured only one title, achieved by Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti/Lanny Tria Mayasari at the Thailand Masters Super 300 in early February. In the most recent major event, the Asian Championships in Ningbo, China, held from April 8-13, Indonesia fell behind in competition with China, Malaysia, and Hong Kong, the three countries that claimed titles. Indonesia's best result was reaching the semifinals, achieved by the men's doubles pair Leo Rolly Carnando/Bagas Maulana and the mixed doubles pair Jafar Hidayatullah/Felisha Alberta Nathaniel Pasaribu.

If they make it past the group stage, the challenge becomes even greater. Since the quarter-finals will be decided by a draw between the winners and runners-up from different groups, there is a chance of facing a strong team, such as China, South Korea or Japan.

To realize the target of getting on the podium, senior players who are experienced in world-level team championships were brought by Indonesia. In the singles, there are Jonatan Christie and Gregoria. The men's doubles still registered Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto even though their achievements this year were lower than Leo/Bagas also included in the team. Leo/Bagas achieved their highest results by appearing in the All England final and the semifinals of the Asian Championships.

The mixed doubles, in fact, brought Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja who is currently playing with Rehan Naufal Kusharjanto and training at PB Djarum. They performed well in four consecutive tournaments in Europe, February-March, by reaching the finals of the German Open and Orleans Masters, then the quarterfinals of the All England, and the champion of the Polish Open International Challenge.

"Rehan/Gloria are quite experienced in team matches. In addition, Gloria can be paired with Rinov (Rivaldy) or Dejan (Ferdinansyah)," Eng Hian continued.

In women's doubles, Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti is the most experienced athlete in the Sudirman Cup. Fadia/Lanny Tria Mayasari could be an alternative to Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma/Amalia Cahaya Pratiwi who will make their debut in the Sudirman Cup, but are currently Indonesia's number one women's doubles with an eighth world ranking.

The semifinal target was set in line with another target, namely regeneration. PBSI also brought young players, especially in the singles category.

Alwi Farhan (19 years old) and Mohammad Zaki Ubaidillah (17) are Jonatan's backups. They were chosen because Anthony Sinisuka Ginting is still recovering from a right shoulder injury. Meanwhile, Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo's performance has stagnated with three first-round eliminations from four 2025 tournaments.

As for accompanying Gregoria, the opportunity to play in the 19th edition of the Sudirman Cup since 1989 was given to Putri Kusuma Wardani who also appeared in the 2021 and 2023 Sudirman Cups. The 22-year-old athlete had good moments in 2025 by reaching the quarter-finals of the Malaysia and India Opens, as well as the semifinals of the Thailand Masters and Swiss Open. Putri is also increasingly confident when facing top world athletes.

"This is a form of regeneration for the singles sector, too, to hone their mentality in the team championship," said Eng Hian about the selection of Alwi, Zaki, and Putri.

However, PBSI did not register the young mixed doubles pair, Jafar Hidayatullah/Felisha Alberta Nathaniel Pasaribu, even though they could become semifinalists in the Thailand Masters and the Asian Championships. PBSI chose to bring Rinov/Pitha Haningtyas Mentari who are still the number one mixed doubles pair in Indonesia based on the world ranking (22nd), even though they only appeared together in the Asian Championships this year and lost in the quarterfinals.

Rinov/Pitha changed partners in early 2025, namely Rinov with Lisa Ayu Kusumawati and Pitha with young player, Verrel Yustin Mulia. However, mixed doubles coach, Rionny Mainaky, plans to return the Rinov/Pitha formation as a continuation of their appearance at the Asian Championships.

Group A: China, Thailand, Hong Kong, Algeria

Group B: South Korea, Taiwan, Czech Republic, Canada

Group C: Japan, Malaysia, France, Australia

Group D: Indonesia, Denmark, India, England

SON

Single

1. Jonathan Christie

2. Alwi Farhan

3. Mohammad Zaki Ubaidillah

Double

1.     Fajar Alfian

2.     Muhammad Rian Ardianto

3.     Muhammad Shohibul Fikri

4.     Daniel Martin

5.     Leo Rolly Carnando

6.     Bagas Maulana

7.     Rinov Rivaldy

8.     Dejan Ferdinand

9.     Rehan Naufal Kusharjanto

DAUGHTER

Single

1. Gregoria Mariska Tunjung

2. Princess Kusuma Wardani

Double

1.     Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma

2.     Amallia Cahaya Pratiwi

3.     Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti

4.     Lanny Tria Mayasari

5.     Pitha Haningtyas Mentari

6.     Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja