Momota, Ratchanok seal Indonesia titles
Print Edition
JAPANESE rising star Kento Momota beat defending champion Jan O Jorgensen of Denmark in the men’s singles finals to win the Indonesia Open yesterday.
In a nail-biting 66-minute battle in Jakarta, the two-time world junior champion Momota showed grit and tenacity as he chased down every shot and battled for every point to a well-deserved 16-21, 21-19, 21-7 upset win.
Momota went down 16-21 in the first game, but never gave up and continued to engage the Dane in long rallies, formidable net play and on-point aggressive smashes to win the second game with a slim 21-19 scoreline.
There was a smile of triumph on his face as he took control of the third game. Last year’s men’s singles winner Jorgensen cracked under pressure and hit either too long or wide to trail by a wide margin and hand the men’s singles title to Momota.
“I was nervous in the first game. Then I convinced myself that if I could win the second game, I would win the whole match,” Momota said. “In future, I want to strengthen myself mentally.”
Jorgensen said he was “really disappointed” with his performance, especially in the second game.
“This was my game and I think I had all the chances I needed when I was leading 16-14 in the second game. Had been leading all the way so yes... really disappointing,” he said.
In the third game, Momota “got a good start and he made some easy points and I made some mistakes”, he said.
“And then suddenly he had a big lead and it’s tough to catch up,” he added.
Thai Ratchanok Intanon easily took down Japan’s Yui Hashimoto in straight games to clinch the women’s title.
Ratchanok, who was contesting the final for the second straight year, walloped the Japanese with solid, precise smashes and finished her off with a 21-11, 21-10 scoreline in only 42 minutes.
“I am happy to win,” Ratchanok said. “My opponent appeared tired and not giving the maximum perhaps due to previous matches.”
Deprived of singles glory, powerhouse China had to settle for two doubles titles, with Tang Jinhua and Tian Qing brushing aside Indonesians Nitya Krishinda Maheswari and Greysia Polii 21-11, 21-10 in the women’s doubles final and Xu Chen and Ma Jin defeating compatriots Zhang Nan and Zhao Yunlei 21-17, 21-16 for the mixed doubles crown.
However, Ko Sung-hyun and Shin Baek-choel edged Fu Haifeng and Zhang Nan 21-16, 16-21, 21-19 in the men’s doubles final to deny China another title.
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