KUALA LUMPUR: Defending champions China had to dig deep to avoid a surprise defeat to Indonesia, winning 3-2 yesterday in the quarterfinals of the Sudirman Cup.
Two days after whipping their archrivals 5-0 in a group match, China, who have not lost a tie since falling 2-3 to South Korea in the 2003 final, were stunned by a determined and gallant Indonesian outfit.
But Chinese supremo Li Yongbo was unperturbed. China are eyeing their fifth consecutive win in the biennial event.
“We have won it for so many times — eight times,” the coach said.
“I don’t mind if we lose it as long as my players show their determination and fighting spirit... Sometimes it’s good for other teams to win it.” Indonesia’s Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir gave the 1989 champions a dream start when they defeated the world number one mixed doubles pairing of Ma Jin and Xu Chen 21-18, 14-21, 21-16.
China’s Chen Long, as expected, levelled the scores when he beat Tommy Sugiarto 21-11, 21-15. But then Rian Agung Saputro and Angga Pratama edged Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng 19-21, 21-18, 21-15.
Coach Li blamed “a few bad line calls” for the men’s doubles loss, saying he was “very disappointed with the umpiring.”
Introducing technology to review disputed line-calls, as in tennis and football, is being tested at the cup, but it can’t be used to challenge decisions yet.
“But I’m not going to take anything away from Indonesia... They have performed above expectation,” Li said.
The Chinese women then turned on the power as Olympic champion Li Xuerui outclassed Lindaweni Fanetri 21-16, 21-13, and world champions Yu Yang and Wang Xiaoli beat Liliyana Natsir and Nitya Krishinda Maheswari 21-12, 21-19.
Indonesian manager Rexy Mainaky said the team made a “tactical gamble” by fielding Natsir, a strong player, in the mixed and women’s doubles.
“Nonetheless, I’m quite pleased with the way the team performed, and with a bit of luck, we could have won the tie,” the former Olympic champion said.
Meanwhile, South Korea kept up their performance of reaching every Sudirman Cup semi-final when they outclassed Germany 3-0.
The three-time champions were simply too strong for the European champion with their mixed doubles pairing of Ko Sung-Hyun and Kim Ha-Na charting the way, followed by a hard fought men’s singles match and then a men’s doubles victory.
“We expected to win and march on, and we all did exactly what we were expected to do,” said Lee Yong-Dae, who played in the men’s doubles.
South Korea will now face either Japan or Thailand. The two teams are playing later Thursday as are Taiwan and Denmark in another quarter-final.
Germany coach Holger Hasse said the team was “disappointed” with the all-out defeat.
“I thought we could steal a point or two,” he said.
China survives Indonesia scare in Sudirman Cup
China survives Indonesia scare in Sudirman Cup
PSG star Hakimi faces trial for alleged rape
- The 27-year-old Moroccan international denies any wrongdoing
- “I contest it and everything proves that it is false,” Hakimi wrote on X
PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain footballer Achraf Hakimi, a key player in their Champions League-winning side last season, is to stand trial charged with raping a young woman, his lawyer and a French prosecutor told AFP Tuesday.
In February 2023, a woman then aged 24 told police in Val-De-Marne southeast of Paris that Hakimi had raped her.
The 27-year-old Moroccan international, who played a pivotal role in Morocco becoming the first African and Arab side to reach the World Cup semifinals when they made the last four in 2022, denies any wrongdoing.
“Today, a rape accusation is enough to justify a trial, even though I contest it and everything proves that it is false,” he wrote on X on Tuesday.
“I await this trial calmly, which will allow the truth to come out publicly.”
Hakimi’s lawyer Fanny Colin said a trial had been ordered and the prosecutor in the Nanterre suburb of Paris confirmed it.
“A trial has been ordered on the basis of an accusation that rests solely on the word of a woman who obstructed all investigations, refused all medical examinations and DNA tests, refused to allow her mobile phone to be examined, and refused to give the name of a key witness,” Colin said.
The plaintiff said she met Hakimi in January 2023 on Instagram and went to his home in a taxi ordered by the player, a police source said at the time.
She claimed that the player kissed her, touched her without her consent and then raped her.
She said she managed to push him away and text a friend, who came to pick her up.
PSG coach Luis Enrique when asked about it at Tuesday’s press conference, ahead of the Champions League play-off second leg match with Monaco, said: “This matter is in the hands of the authorities.”
The plaintiff’s lawyer, Rachel-Flore Pardo, said her client was relieved to hear the case was going to court.
She said the judiciary had been exemplary in handling the case.
But its treatment in general showed “there are still areas where the #MeToo movement has not yet breached the sound barrier, chiefly in men’s football,” she added.
Hakimi, born in Spain to a Moroccan mother, trained with Real Madrid making his senior debut for them in 2017.
He was also one of Morocco’s superstars during the Africa Cup of Nations, with the host team making it to the final where they lost in a chaotic climax to the tournament to Senegal.
Hakimi joined PSG in 2021, after stints with Borussia Dortmund and Inter Milan.
