Local hero and 15th seed Tommy Sugiarto crashed out of the world badminton championships on Wednesday, unable to fend off wily Hong Kong shuttler Wei Nan in a gripping three-set contest.
Sugiarto, Indonesia’s only hope in the men’s singles, came within an inch of winning the epic 70 minute battle but eventually succumbed 26-24, 8-21, 22-20 to his unseeded opponent.
The home favourite narrowly dropped the first set before steamrolling Wei in the second. But the real fireworks were in the decider, with the pair neck and neck as the crowd rallied before Sugiarto.
A devastated Sugiarto said he rushed in the final set, too eager to win the game rather than play his best.
“It is hard to accept this defeat,” the 27-year-old told reporters after the match.
Wei, who now progresses to the round of 16, told reporters he went into the match not expecting to beat Sugiarto on home soil.
“There was tremendous pressure on the court,” the world number 20 said of the booming crowd in the arena.
“It was not easy to beat Tommy.”
It wasn’t all bad news for the hosts on Wednesday, with local shuttler Lindaweni Fanetri upstaging 13th seed Minatsu Mitani from Japan in the women’s singles to progress to round three. – Agence France-Presse
