Korea Open 2023: Strategy To Bring Fajar/Rian To Quarter Finals

The pair Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto. (Photo: Twitter/@INABadminton)

JAKARTA - The Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto pair qualified for the quarter-finals of the Korea Open 2023. They defeated the men's doubles from Taiwan, Lu Ching Yao/Yang Po Ha, Thursday, July 20.

The world number one men's doubles won two straight games 21-19, 21-15 over their opponents. Fajar said a mature strategy was the key to victory.

"Today my long service is also a hassle (against), because I saw the opponent guarding up front once and in the end maybe not too ready," Fajar said after the match.

Fajar/Rian are well aware of the Lu/Yang pair who have a very strong power advantage. Moreover, the two couples have met seven times, including in today's match.

The record for the meeting made Fajar/Rian begin to memorize the character of the opponent's game. That's what allows them to prepare an effective strategy.

"We know that the Taiwanese couple have very strong power, but because we have met many times and we also watched their match against Leo/Daniel, so we tried to reduce it patiently, organize attacks and provide a lot of fine ball placements," Fajar said, as reported by Antara.

The pair nicknamed Fajri were grateful to be able to go through the last 16 match smoothly and again recorded a victory in the BWF Super 500 tournament.

Lu/Yang displayed a good game in the first game, even being able to put up a fight before the game ended.

"The opponent played quite well, especially in the first game. They kept pressing us with drive balls," said Rian.

Overall, Fajar/Rian admitted that they did not find any significant obstacles when facing the second half. Even so, they still have to adapt to the technical conditions of the field such as wind conditions and shuttlecocks.

"That also makes us still make our own mistakes. This is our evaluation for the next match," said Rian.