JAKARTA - Kevin Sanjaya is ready to fight at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday. But, not yet competing, Kevin has made a scene and made Indonesia proud.
The pair of Marcus Gideon in the men's doubles sector is included in Time magazine's list of the world's top 48 athletes whose action must be watched at the Tokyo Olympics. Kevin is side by side with world-famous athletes such as Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus and American basketball player Kevin Durant.
"Badminton is the only sport where Indonesia has won Olympic gold, and the game is as popular there as football or basketball in other parts of the world," wrote Time magazine.
"Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo, the world's top-ranked doubles player with his partner, Marcus Fernaldi Gideon, is the latest star to bring hope to his badminton-mad nation," continued the US weekly news magazine.
Indonesian men's doubles Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo/Marcus Fernaldi Gideon face a tough challenge in the group stage at the 2020 Olympics.
Based on the draw, the world's number one pair Kevin/Marcus are in Group A with Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin (Taiwan), Ben Lane/Sean Vendy (England), Chrirag Shetty/Satwiksairaj Rankireddy (India).
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Kevin/Marcus, who came without any competitive warm-up tournaments this year, must be wary of Lee/Wang who won three tournaments in a row in Bangkok, Thailand, last January.
Lee/Wang also defeated Hendra/Ahsan in the final round of the BWF World Tour Finals 2020, last January.
Lane/Vendy and Rankireddy/Shetty also need to be watched out for as they recorded quite good results in several tournaments leading up to Tokyo.
The Minions will face Lane/Vendy on Saturday, 10.20 western Indonesia time, on Field 2.
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