Big upset: Indonesia's 2023 world junior champion Alwi Farhan celebrates after defeating Denmark's Anders Antonsen in their men's singles match. - AFP
PETALING JAYA: Indonesia proved their mettle by clinching the top spot in Group D with a dominant 4-1 victory over Denmark but the victory came at a heavy price.
Men’s doubles shuttler Daniel Marthin, who partnered Shohibul Fikri, picked up an injury during their match against world No. 1 pair Anders Skaarup Rasmussen and Kim Astrup.
Daniel hurt himself after landing awkwardly while returning a shot, which left him struggling with discomfort in his left leg.
Despite the pain, he soldiered on and helped secure a crucial 21-16, 21-18 win, delivering the winning point for Indonesia.
"I felt some discomfort in my left knee after landing awkwardly from a jump," said Daniel, as quoted by the Indonesian Badminton Association.
"I could still put weight on my right leg, but it was difficult to rely on the left. I didn’t want to think too much about it during the match – my focus was just on finishing the game and giving my best to win.
"Now, I’ll focus on recovery and get a detailed check-up. Hopefully, it’s nothing serious."
Indonesia only dropped one point through Rinov Rivaldy-Gloria Widjaja who fell 20-22, 23-21, 16-21 to Jesper Toft-Amalie Magelund in the mixed doubles.
Their 2023 world junior champion Alwi Farhan pulled off a stunning upset by beating world No. 2 Anders Antonsen 21-17, 15-21, 21-17 while the other winners were Putri Kusuma (women's singles) and Febriana Kusuma-Amallia Pratiwi (women's doubles).
Indonesia have now joined China, South Korea and Japan as group winners into the quarter-finals.
Group A: China bt Thailand 4-1.
Group B: Korea bt Taiwan 4-1.
Group C: Japan bt Malaysia 3-2 (Hiroki Midorikawa-Arisa Higashino lost to Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei 19-21, 18-21; Kodai Naraoka lost to Leong Jun Hao 8-21, 21-13, 18-21; Tomoka Miyazaki bt. Goh Jin Wei 21-14, 21-17; Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi bt Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik 12-21, 22-20, 23-21; Nami Matsuyama-Chiharu Shida bt Pearly Tan- M. Thinaah18-21-18, 18-21, 21-18).
Group D: Indonesia bt Denmark 4-1 (Rinov Rivaldy-Gloria Widjaja lost to Jesper Toft-Amalie Magelund 22-20, 21-23, 21-16; Alwi Farhan bt Anders Antonsen 21-17, 15-21, 21-17; Putri Kusuma bt Line Kjaersfeldt 21-6, 21-5; Shohibul Fikri-Daniel Marthin bt Kim Astrup Anders Skaarup Rasmussen 21-16, 21-18; Febriana Kusuma-Amallia Pratiwi bt Alexandra Boje-Line Christophersen 21-15, 21-15.)
