Kiwi Winners Hard To Find At Auckland International

It was close, but not quite for the Kiwi on the finals day of the US$5,000 Auckland Badminton International as some unheralded Indonesians dominated four out of the five finals.

Although not Indonesians top players the mainly teenage competitors from the badminton crazy nation won everything bar the mixed title, which had two Australian combinations playing off for the trophy.

New Zealand No1 Joe Wu came close to a win in the men’s singles but the two hour-long semifinal clashes in singles and doubles the previous night appeared to take its toll against the talented 16-year-old Indonesia Riyanto Subagja.

Wu took the first game 14-21 in an entertaining contest before the Indonesian came back to claim the second 21-16 and then the final game with an array of winners to seal the match 21-10 in the final game.

The other final featuring Kiwis was the women’s match where Michelle Chan(Auckland) and North Harbour’s Rachel Hindley faced the Indonesia pair of Jenna Gozali and Rufika Olivta. The New Zealand combination held a solid lead in the first game but the visitors came back with some subtle touches to take it 21-16 and the second game 21-11.

In the all-Australian mixed final the more experienced pair of Glenn Warfe and Renuga Veeran beat Chad Whitehead and Eugenia Tanaka.

The women’s singles saw another rising star from Indonesia Febby Angguni, 18, the women’s top seed defeat fellow Indonesian Rosaria Pungkasari in straight games while Berry Angriawan and Muhammad Ulinnuha put on a powerful display to account for their countrymen Indrianto and Kusdianto in straight games in from of a small but enthusiastic crowd at Gillies Ave.

Many of the players will return to Auckland for the US$50,000 New Zealand International Grand Prix tournament in late July which is expected to confirm a naming right sponsor within the next week.

Results:
Men’s doubles
Berry Angriawan/Muhammad Ulinnuha(Indonesia) Didit Juan Indrianto/Seiko Wahyu Kusdianto(Indonesia) 21-14 21-19
Mixed final:
Glenn Warfe/Renuga Veeran(Australia) bt Chad Whitehead/Eugenia Tanaka(Australia) 21-12 21-15.
Women’s singles final:
Febby Angguni(Indonesia) bt Rosaria Yusfin Pungkasari(Indonesia) 21-15 21-16.
Men’s singles:
Riyanto Subagja(Indonesia) bt Joe Wu(New Zealand) 14-21 21-16 21-10.
Women’s doubles:
Jenna Gozali/Rufika Olivta(Indonesia) bt Michelle Chan/Rachel Hindley(New Zealand) 21-16 21-11