The attention of badminton fans will be on Japan as the new Thomas Cup champions begin their quest for a first Asian Games men’s team gold medal.
The 17th Asian Games in Incheon, Korea, pits most of the heavyweights of the badminton world against one another, and Japan will again need to be at their best if they are to emerge champions. Playing with a format similar to the Thomas Cup (three singles and two doubles), Japan will be banking on their balanced squad to deliver. Singles spearhead Kenichi Tago, who missed the Li-Ning BWF World Championships, has been included in the squad. The team event begins tomorrow.
The Thomas Cup champions (featured image) find themselves in the lower half of the draw and face either Korea or India in the quarter-finals after a bye in the first round.
Hosts Korea will be aiming to reclaim the gold medal they won in 1986 and 2002. Boosted by the return of Men’s Singles veteran Lee Hyun Il
(below) and with strong doubles pairs such as newly-crowned World champions Ko Sung Hyun/Shin Baek Choel, Korea have a formidable unit and the quarter-final is likely to be a hotly-contested affair.
Thailand will take on Chinese Taipei in a first-round clash in the lower half of the draw. The winners will meet second seeds Indonesia for a place in the semi-finals. Indonesia have been strengthened by the return of Mohammad Ahsan/Hendra Setiawan (below), who also missed the recent World Championships.
Five-time kings, China, meanwhile, will look to claim their third gold medal in a row, which would complete an unprecedented hat-trick as no country has won three straight men’s team gold medals. The No.1 seeds have a bye in the first round. They are likely to face Hong Kong in the quarter-finals and Malaysia in the semi-finals. Chen Long’s Men’s Singles victory at the World Championships means China will have a confident leader along with senior compatriot Lin Dan in the singles department. If China meet Malaysia in the quarter-finals, fans can expect a replay of the World Championships Men’s Singles final between Chen Long and Lee Chong Wei. Malaysia, who finished runners-up at the Thomas Cup, might fancy their chances of upsetting the defending champions given the strength of their doubles; an aspect which has concerned the Chinese.
It is a different story in the women’s team event. China’s reign as champions from 1974 has been broken only once – by Korea in 1994. Boasting nine gold medals from the last ten Asian Games, China has set a record that will not be emulated in a while.
The Uber Cup champions’ (below) first tie will be in the quarter-finals against Malaysia as both teams have first-round byes. If China progress, they will run into either Japan or Indonesia in the semi-finals. Uber Cup runners-up Japan have a balanced squad led by World Championships bronze medallist Minatsu Mitani and includes World Junior champion Akane Yamaguchi.
The closest first-round match is likely to be between Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong, with the winners battling second seeds Korea in the quarter-finals. India, should they get past Macau in their opening encounter, face Thailand in a contest between two nations of approximately equal strength.
Second seeds Korea have a bye in the first round. Having strong singles and doubles players – and strong home support – the Koreans can expect to make the final. The women’s team final is on Monday 22nd September and the men’s team final the next day.
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