Without Having To Work Hard, The Women's National Team Walks To The BATC Finals

JAKARTA - The Indonesian women's badminton national team received surprising ease by advancing to the final round of the Badminton Asia Team Championships in Malaysia without having to struggle in the semifinals after the Japanese team withdrew on Saturday.

Based on official information released by Badminton Asia, the Japanese women's team withdrew on the grounds that their player formation was not fit to compete.

"This is good news, we escaped without breaking a sweat. Even though we gathered last night and asked the players, they said they were ready to fight all out to contribute points," said women's singles coach Herli Djaenudin as quoted by Antara, Saturday, February 19.

Information about Japan's withdrawal was received by the Indonesian team in the morning while on the bus ride from the hotel to Setia City Convention Center, Selangor.

"We must be grateful for this result because we were given the convenience of being able to qualify for the final without a match. The children are actually ready for combat, the condition of the players is also healthy and ready mentally and physically," said women's doubles coach Prasetyo Restu Basuki.

According to Herli, Japan's withdrawal added to the team's spirit because a phase that was predicted to be difficult to pass turned out to be free of charge.

Meanwhile, Prasetyo ensured that his students would be ready to face whoever his opponent was in the final round on Sunday. An unmatched victory in the last four made the players even more enthusiastic.

"Although the target for the final round has been achieved, we will continue to fight until the last drop of blood," Prasetyo emphasized.

Now the women's team of the Garuda Muda Squad is taking advantage of their free time by practicing seriously. For two hours the women's team practiced at the Setia Badminton Hall which is not far from the competition arena.

"Today we are preparing to face whoever the opponent is in tomorrow's final. This exercise is to finalize the preparation and strategy to face the final. We will maximize the practice," said Prasetyo.

"Today the female players continue to practice. This is to maintain the children's fitness condition and maintain their fighting spirit," Herli added.