No More Titles for Indonesia

NINGBO, SATURDAY — Indonesia once again failed to secure a championship title. The results of the two semifinals not only caused Indonesia to miss out on a title in the Asian Badminton Championship but also in nearly all tournaments that have taken place throughout 2025.

The certainty of not securing a championship title in the Asian Championship in Ningbo, China, was confirmed after two semifinalists were defeated. In the first and final matches held at the Ningbo Olympics Sports Gymnasium, Ningbo, China, on Saturday (12/4/2025), losses were suffered by Jafar Hidayatullah/Felisha Alberta Nathaniel Pasaribu and Leo Rolly Carnando/Bagas Maulana.

Jafar/Felisha lost to Hiroki Midarikawa/Natsu Saito (Japan) with a score of 21-15, 21-23, 11-21. Despite being eliminated, the youngest pair in the main national mixed doubles training camp demonstrated a strong performance during their time in Ningbo by defeating seeded players, including the world’s third-ranked pair, Goh Soon Huat/Lai Shevon Jemie (Malaysia) in the quarterfinals.

Leo/Bagas, as Indonesia's last hope to bring home the Asian championship title, ultimately faced the same outcome. They played well in the first game, made several mistakes toward the end of the second game, and were unable to match the powerful play of their opponents, resulting in a loss of 21-13, 18-21, 12-21 to Chen Bo Yang/Liu Yi (China).

The defeat of Leo/Bagas and Jafar/Felisha, who advanced the furthest compared to their teammates, not only left Indonesia without an Asian championship title in the last three editions. This result also left the Indonesian badminton team without titles from the majority of tournaments in 2025.

Of the nine tournaments at the Super 100, 300, 500, 750, and 1000 levels that have taken place, only one Indonesian representative emerged as champion, namely Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti/Lanny Tria Mayasari. They won the Thailand Masters Super 300 at the end of January. After that, Indonesian badminton athletes struggled to compete against many countries, such as China, Japan, South Korea, and South Korea.

Better results were achieved by young players still competing at the international series/challenge level. The best moment occurred during the Singapore International Challenge tournament in February, when Indonesia won four events.

In Ningbo, China was the country with the most finalists. They placed five representatives in the final although more players lost in the semifinals, namely six representatives. Three losses were experienced by those who faced athletes from other countries, while the other three occurred in matches between Chinese athletes.

Of the five finals to be held on Sunday, the only event not represented by a Chinese player is the mixed doubles. Midorikawa/Saito will compete for the title with Tang Chun Man/Tse Ying Suet (Hong Kong). Meanwhile, the women's singles title is certain to belong to one of the host athletes in the final between Chen Yu Fei and Han Yue.

In the other three events, the host athletes will be challenged by Nami Matsuyama/Chiharu Shida (Japan) in women's doubles, Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik (Malaysia/men's doubles), and Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Thailand/men's singles).

From the performance shown during the semifinals, Leo/Bagas have not been able to show their high-level consistency in one tournament, even in one match. When the opponent changes the game pattern, they have not been able to adapt quickly.

In the second game, for example, the Chinese pair applied more counter-attacking game patterns after being patient in defense. This method paid off when they were able to change the rhythm and direction of their shots, which made Leo/Bagas confused.

Another thing that benefited Chen/Liu in the final points of the second game was the mistakes made by Leo/Bagas. When trying to win a point from a drive, for example, Bagas' shuttlecock fell outside the court. In fact, Leo/Bagas could have turned the tables to lead 16-14 after being 11-14 behind.

Chen/Liu maintained the momentum at the start of the third game until they immediately led 4-0. This was the beginning of their lag throughout the third game.

Having difficulty anticipating attacks from Chen/Liu in almost every point fight, Leo/Bagas could only get closer by one point, namely at 3-4 and 8-9. After the interval, they fell further behind.

The stadium, which was mostly quiet in the first game until the middle of the second game, became crowded with cheers from the audience supporting China's number three men's doubles.

"The opponent played very well, especially in the second and third games. They rarely made mistakes, very tight and solid. We have tried various ways, various patterns, various shots, but it was difficult to penetrate," Bagas commented.

Meanwhile, Leo thanked Bagas for trying hard to cover his less than optimal movements. This happened because Leo felt uncomfortable in his left knee after slipping in the third game.

In addition, Leo also said that his game in front of the net was not so deadly. "The opponent also played very well. Their defense was much tighter compared to last year's meeting," said Leo who defeated Chen/Liu at the 2024 Kumamoto Masters tournament.

Leo/Bagas' target to be able to perform consistently in the Asian Championship can be considered achieved in terms of results. Motivated by the achievement of the All England final, a month earlier, they achieved results that were not much different. Moreover, even though it is only a continental championship, the Asian Championship competes for the same ranking points as the All England, a Super 1000 BWF World Tour tournament.

However, the men's doubles competition, as the tightest among all numbers, requires the world's 14th-ranked men's doubles to reach a stage of consistency in performance. In high-level tournaments, such as Super 750 and 1000, small mistakes can make the difference in the results.

Asian Championship Final, Sunday (13/4/2025)

Mixed doubles : Tang Chun Man/Tse Ying Suet (Hong Kong/5) - Hiroki Midorikawa/Natsu Saito (Japan/8)

Women's singles : Chen Yu Fei (China) - Han Yue (China/2)

Women's doubles : Liu Sheng Shu/Tan Ning (China/1) - Nami Matsuyama/Chiharu Shida (Japan/3)

Men's singles: Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Thailand/3) - Lu Guang Zu (China)

Men's doubles: Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik (Malaysia/6) - Chen Bo Yang/Liu Yi (China)