There were no Indonesian representatives in sight, but the Kento MOMOTA-Anders ANTONSEN final duel certainly provided a thrilling treat, which kept fans at the edge of their seats throughout the 79-minute final battle. The Danish young player kept his composure, playing with patience and a well-planned strategy, which often caught MOMOTA off guard. ANTONSEN was clearly composed throughout the final, showing a good footwork and provided an excellent coverage of the court.

After winning 21-16 in the first game, ANTONSEN lost focus in the second game with MOMOTA upping his speed to gain control over ANTONSEN. The decider however saw MOMOTA committing too many errors with ANTONSEN resorting to sending the shuttlecock deep to the baseline to prevent MOMOTA from making his trademark smashes. With the gap widened to 11-8 at interval, it was evident that MOMOTA was running out of steam, at times struggling to return the shuttlecock, which puts ANTONSEN in the control and went on to win 21-16. It’s definitely a huge achievement for ANTONSEN, who became the first European player to have won the title at Istora Senayan.

It was supposed to be one of the main highlights of the tournament with both Carolina MARIN of Spain and India’s Saina NEHWAL bent on winning the Super 500 series title, especially for NEHWAL, whose campaign in the recently concluded PERODUA MALAYSIA MASTERS 2019 presented by DAIHATSU was halted by MARIN at the semifinals stage. The Spanish ace played well in the preliminary and knockout rounds with her brands of aggressive and attacking display, to eventually book a slot in the finals. However, it was not meant to be when MARIN unfortunately suffered injuries on her leg in the middle of the first game where she was clearly dominating and leading NEHWAL 7-2. MARIN set up a fast-paced game, keeping NEHWAL at bay with her aggressive attacks, precision and good net play as well as a solid defence which continuously frustrate NEHWAL.

The final duel ended prematurely, following MARIN’s injury, which gave the NEHWAL and India their first Indonesia Masters title. It was not a great way to win but NEHWAL certainly earned the victory following a consistent display throughout the tournament and should be congratulated for a job well done!

At Istora Senayan, the fans were in euphoria as the world number one pair Marcus Fernaldi GIDEON-Kevin Sanjaya SAKAMULJO took on Mohamad AHSAN-Hendara SETIAWAN in an all-Indonesian final. Being in the same camp, both pairs knew each other’s game well enough but in the end, GIDEON-SAKAMULJO were too good for AHSAN-SETIAWAN as they cruised to an easy 21-17, 21-11 victory in just 25 minutes.

There were flashes of brilliance in the first game, which saw AHSAN and SETIAWAN briefly troubling the world number one. But, GIDEON-SAKAMULJO were in no mood to allow their opponent get the upper hand. As always, their court coverage was outstanding, leaving little gaps for AHSAN-SETIAWAN to penetrate their rock-solid defence or force them into making errors. With 20 Superseries/Super500 titles in their bag thus far, including the PERODUA MALAYSIA MASTERS 2019 presented by DAIHATSU, the Indonesian top pair proved themselves invincible and are set to rule the world stage in many years to come!

Japan’s stronghold in the women’s doubles remained intact with Misaki MATSUTOMO and Ayaka TAKAHASHI successfully retaining the title they won last year. Against Korea’s top pair of KIM So-Yeong-KONG Hee Yong, the Japanese were given a run for their money when they were tied 17-17 after taking a commanding 7-point lead in the first game. Their vast experience in handling such situation was what saved them from declining further as they went on to seal the game 21-19.

Some tactical changes ensued with the Japanese pair increasing the tempo of the game, which forced the Koreans into a defensive mode. And this clearly gave them the advantage as it suited their attacking style of play. Both MATSUTOMO and TAKAHASHI will definitely be looking forward to defending their 2016 Olympics gold medal feat next year. Japan’s strength in the women’s doubles is evident after winning 11 out the 12 women’s doubles titles in the Super 500 or higher tournament.

As I stepped onto the courts for my final duel against the reigning champion and world number one ZHENG Siwei-HUANG Yaqiong, my heart was pounding and my emotion mixed with joy and sadness. The fans have been great throughout my career and a victory in my last appearance at Istora Senayan is a perfect gift to them. However, it was not meant to be as both my long-time partner Ahmad TONTOWI and I eventually stumbled yet again at the hands of the formidable ZHENG and HUANG. We played hard with a combination of tactics in the three-game battle which lasted 56 minutes. We managed to contain our opponents in the first game with few mistakes and ensuring that every shot was not wasted.

However, going into the second game, it was intense as at one time, it looked like we’re heading for the podium after getting out to an 18-14 lead before letting our opponents pull the brakes on us with a 6-point run. We tried hard to contain them and close the gap but to no avail and eventually had to concede a 21-19, 19-21,16-21 defeat. It was my 798th match, out of which I had won 600. I felt bad for not being able to bring the joy of victor, to my fans. My badminton journey has now come to an end and I wish all the players and badminton fraternities all over the world all the best!