Indonesia Sends Main Formation In Thomas Cup Final Against India

Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (Photo: PBSI)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian badminton national team lowered the formation of the main players in an effort to defend the Thomas Cup title. Garuda troops will face India in the final round which will take place at Impact Arena Bangkok, Thailand, Sunday, at 13.00 western Indonesia time.

With the same arrangement, Indonesia managed to get out of the quarter-finals against China and helped lead the national team to the final when they beat Japan in the semifinals on Friday.

Quoted from Antara, Anthony Sinisuka Ginting as the first single, will face Lakshya Sen. The first meeting of the two players which took place at the German Open in March did not end well for Indonesia.

At that time Ginting was defeated by Sen who is now ranked ninth in the world.

The first men's doubles will play Mohammad Ahsan/Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo against Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty. The two pairs have also met at the 2018 Asian Team Championship group stage.

At that time, Ahsan/Kevin lost in the rubber game. Even so, the appearance of the Ahsan/Kevin pair against China and Japan previously showed a positive trend and appeared solid.

In the second singles party, Jonatan Christie, who was the determinant of Indonesia's exit from the quarter-finals against China, this time will meet 11th place Kidambi Srikanth.

According to BWF records, from their nine meetings, Jonathan has secured five victories of them. Including the last two wins which occurred at the Swiss Open and Korea Open this year.

Then in the second doubles, it was Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto's turn to meet the pair MR Arjun/Dhruv Kapila. Fajar/Rian's record against Arjun/Kapila is also very good, with a 3-0 score obtained from the Denmark Open 2021, Swiss Open 2022, and the 2022 Asian Team Championships.

In the last match, Shesar Hiren Rhustavito will decide the fate of Indonesia if the last match is played. However, the opponent of the badminton player from Sukoharjo, Central Java, namely HS Prannoy, has a 0-2 advantage.

Even so, Prannoy's two wins came from long-standing tournaments, namely the 2010 India Grand Prix and the 2017 New Zealand Open.

The following is the line-up for Indonesia vs India in the 2022 Thomas Cup final:

1. Men's singles Anthony Sinisuka Ginting vs Lakshya Sen

2. Men's Doubles Mohammad Ahsan/Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo vs Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty

3. Men's singles Jonathan Christie vs Kidambi Srikanth

4. Men's doubles Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto vs MR Arjun/Dhruv Kapila

5. Men's singles Shesar Hiren Rhustavito vs HS Prannoy.