Alwi hopes to maintain good momentum at the 2026 Malaysia Open

JAKARTA - Indonesian men's singles badminton player Alwi Farhan hopes to maintain the good momentum he has when appearing in the 2026 Malaysia Open tournament which will be held this week.

The momentum in question is the good performance that has resulted in gold medals for individuals and doubles for Indonesia in the 2025 SEA Games at the end of last year in Thailand.

"I want to take advantage of the momentum and the moment, hopefully I can put out the best game. My job is just to try, the rest I leave the results to God," he said.

Alwi immediately got a tough test in his debut match at the 2026 Malaysia Open. The young Indonesian badminton player will face Alex Lanier who has a seeded status in the BWF Super 1000 level event.

Even though he is not a seeded player, Alwi has a record of winning-losing 2-1 against Lanier. The first victory he got in the 2023 Junior World Team Championships.

Alwi then lost to Lanier at the 2025 Japan Open with a score of 14-21, 15-21, and 18-21. He then won the last meeting at the 2025 French Open, which ended with a score of 21-15 and 21-16.

"I'm proud to be in the Super 1000 from the beginning of the year. There must be a target that I want for the future. So, in this first tournament, everyone has a new spirit, a new enthusiasm, as do I," said Alwi.

Indonesia sent a total of nine representatives to the event which will take place on January 6-11, 2026. From the men's singles, the 2023 junior world champion will compete with Jonatan Christie.

From the women's singles, Indonesia's only hope is on the shoulders of Putri Kusuma Wardani. The 23-year-old shuttler has to perform alone because Gregoria Mariska Tunjung is still not fit from vertigo problems.

In the men's doubles sector, Indonesia sent out the pair of Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Shohibul Fikri, Raymond Indra/Nikolaus Joaquin, and the non-national pair of Sabar Karyaman Gutama/Mohammad Reza Pahlevi Isfahani.

For the women's doubles sector, Indonesia is represented by Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma/Meilysa Trias Puspitasari and the mixed doubles sector is filled by Jafar Hidayatullah/Felisha Alberta Nathaniel Pasaribu and Marwan Faza/Aisyah Salsabila Putri Pranata.