Indonesia’s Fredy Setiawan played a total of eight matches over the last two days to advance to all three of his finals at the 4th Fazza Dubai Para Badminton International 2022.
First, Setiawan and Khalimatus Sadiyah overcame India’s Ruthick Ragupathi and Manasi Girishchandra Joshi 21-13 21-19 for an SL3-SU5 mixed doubles final against Taiyo Imai and Noriko Ito (Japan). He and Dwiyoko then secured the men’s SL3-SL4 doubles final spot when they took out Tarun Dhillon/Kumar Nitesh 21-18 21-14.
“I have some aches and pains but no serious injuries so it’s just a matter of getting enough rest between each match. Mentally it’s about adjusting my focus from singles to doubles. The way I play depends on my partner too,” said Setiawan.
Tarun will have a chance for revenge when he meets Setiawan in the SL4 men’s singles final. Tarun defeated Rickard Nilsson (Sweden) 21-19 21-19 while Setiawan beat Korean Shin Kyung Hwan 21-10 21-16 in the semifinals.
Joshi turns up the heat.
The SL3 men’s and women’s singles finals will be all-Indian affairs.
Daisuke Fujihara (Japan) shook things up for Pramod Bhagat before conceding the semifinal 21-14 14-21 18-21.
“He’s good, quick movements. I was a little slow today,” said Bhagat, who takes on countryman Nitesh in the final.
Joshi did not have it easy either when Australia’s Celine Aurelie Vinot took one game off her but fell 13-21 24-22 19-21.
“I’ve been tiring easily here. Maybe it’s the heat or the fact we’ve been travelling and competing for two weeks. These back-to-back tournaments help me judge my endurance level,” Joshi said.
“I must admit I miss playing against Oksana Kozyna (Ukraine) because she challenges me but tomorrow it’s Mandeep Kaur. She beat me in Bahrain so I’m looking forward to a rematch,” Joshi said.
The SU5 women’s singles saw Cathrine Rosengren fall to India’s Manisha Ramadass 22-24 20-22 while Akiko Sugino overcame teammate Kaede Kameyama 21-13 21-19.
Imai’s SU5 men’s singles clash against Indonesia’s Suryo Nugroho roused the audience, lasted 76 minutes and ended 21-13 12-21 22-20 for the Japanese to advance to the final against Malaysia’s Cheah Liek Hou.
Kim soldiers on.
Kim Jungjun (Korea), Ho Yuen Chan Daniel (Hong Kong China) and Daiki Kajiwara (Japan) continue to circle each other, providing fans with some of the best badminton ever.
Kajiwara ousted Kim 21-11 21-16 in the WH2 men’s singles semifinal and will take on Chan, who defeated Malaysia’s Noor Azwan Noorlan 21-14 21-19.
“Daiki has very good control of the wheelchair and moves fast. Plus our 24-year age gap makes a big difference. My body is recovering from a nagging shoulder pain but I have a few years of badminton in me. Maybe I’ll take this year to heal and be back on track soon,” said Kim.
Chan has been observing the young Japanese Paralympic gold medallist.
“Kajiwara is getting stronger. The Japanese and Koreans train as a group and never lack sparring partners. They focus on how to use the wheelchair to their best advantage, that’s why their movements are so precise.”
In the women’s wheelchair events, Cynthia Mathez (Switzerland) set up two finals for herself.
She took out Kang Jung Kum (Korea) in the WH1 women’s singles 21-12 21-11 and then partnered Ilaria Renggli to defeat Kang and Lee Sun Ae 21-14 21-14 in WH1-W2 doubles.
Mathez will play Korea’s Hyun Ah Kwon in singles and partner Renggli in women’s doubles against Kwon and Gyeoul Jung.
QUOTES OF THE DAY
“I want to keep playing against Kim Jungjun because I’m a huge fan.” – Kajiwara
“The first few minutes during my match I actually had my eye on the next court watching Kim and Kajiwara.” – Chan
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