Taufik Hidayat and Lee Chong Wei on the podium in 2010. Lee won his third Indonesia Open that year.
Smashing Stats: Indonesia Open 2023
Tuesday, June 13, 2023
TEXT BY PREM KUMAR | BADMINTONPHOTO
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Here are some of the things you need to know about the season’s third HSBC BWF World Tour Super 1000 event.
The hosts are the only nation to accomplish a sweep. It has happened four times (1983, 1996, 1997, 2001).
Japan, meanwhile, are the sole country that have not stopped producing titlists from the 2015 edition.
However, they are yet to ace men’s doubles. In freshly-crowned Singapore Open winners Takuro Hoki/Yugo Kobayashi, Japan are counting on a seeded pair (3) to correct that anomaly.
They are also waiting for their maiden mixed doubles champions. Yuta Watanabe and Arisa Higashino are seeded second in the event.
Compatriots and local favourites Mohammad Ahsan/Hendra Setiawan are looking for a breakthrough to add to their only victory in 2013. They finished runners-up in 2014 and 2019.
Indonesia’s longest wait for glory, is in women’s singles. Ellen Angelina’s 2001 triumph was their most recent.
A Tai Tzu Ying victory would make her the first women’s singles shuttler since Li Xue Rui in 2014 to win two on the bounce.
Tai would also become joint-second on the category’s most successful list with a fourth title.
Li remains the last from China to win the discipline. Three Chinese players are seeded this year – Chen Yu Fei (4), He Bing Jiao (5) and Wang Zhi Yi (7).
Jeong Na Eun is the lone player seeded in two departments (sixth in women’s doubles with Kim Hye Jeong and eighth with Kim Won Ho in mixed). No player has taken two events at the same edition since China’s Zhang Yawen in 2006 (women’s and mixed doubles).
Despite their pedigree, Korea are going through a drought in women’s and mixed doubles. Kim Min Jung/Lee Hyo Jung are their most recent women’s doubles titlists (2010) while Kim Dong Moon/Ra Kyung Min won their previous mixed crown 20 years ago.
Among countries waiting for their maiden Indonesia Open champion (s) but have seeded entries are Singapore (men’s singles No.4 Loh Kean Yew), Spain (women’s singles No.6 Carolina Marin) and France (mixed doubles No.5 Thom Gicquel/Delphine Delrue).
Standout Stat: Starting 2011, only pairs from China and Japan have won in women’s doubles.