2012 Li-Ning Australian Under 19 International Badminton Competition presented by Tan and Tan Lawyers Held at Perth Western Australia

More photos from Jiten


Dear Readers



Please see the following link for another perspective of the competition and more photos. These are from Umpire  Jiten Bhatt.


http://www.badmintonwa.org.au/news%20history/2012/news_page_2012_05_06_AJI_Day3_Finals.htm

http://www.badmintonwa.org.au/news%20history/2012/news_page_2012_05_05_AJI_Day2_Quarters_and_Semis.htm

http://www.badmintonwa.org.au/news%20history/2012/news_page_2012_05_04_AJI_Day1_Early_Rounds.htm

http://www.badmintonwa.org.au/news%20history/2012/news_page_2012_05_03_AJI_Welcome_Function.htm

2012 Li-Ning Australian Under 19 International Badminton Competition presented by Tan and Tan Lawyers Held at Perth Western Australia The finals

Dear readers in Australia and overseas

Remember to revisit this website as I have yet to upload the videos and photos. It may take a few days.


The finals has started.

Today was a day of great expectations for the players taking part in the finals.

BAWA has done a great job in organising this tournament. Many of our overseas visitors will not know that all the people in the organising team including the referees, umpires, drivers, etc are all volunteers.

There are too many names to mention here but you all know who you are and I am sure the community sends you a thank you for all the organising that has been done.

The Girl's Singles: Malvinne Anne Venice Alcala (PHIL) v Setyana Daniela Florencya Mapasa (INA)

Favourite Malvinne Anne Venice Alcala (PHIL) is playing Setyana Daniela Florencya Mapasa from (INA). Alcala is getting to a slow start and is trailing at 6/13. Left handed Mapasa is moving well. Alcala is waking up and moving her score to 8/13. Mapasa gets a point back  after losing 3 in a row. Alcala does a jump smash and gets to 9/14 and then 10/14. She is closing the gap to 11/14. Mapasa retrieves a point. Alcala catches another point to 12/14. Alcala is now at 13/15. There is now only a 1 point deficit between the 2 girls in Mapasa's favour. Alcalsa does a drop which Mapasa returns to the net. Alcala does a cross drop that gets her into the lead. She then serves short and it is all even.

Mapasa serves out too. This is becoming a match at 17/17. Alcala is coached by Yogendra from New Vision BA where my sons have trained too. I keep getting amazed at the court coverage by the players. Foot work and more foot work. The score is now 19/17 with Mapasa at the lead.  Mapasa gets to 20/17. A high serve is smashed by Alcala. After a long rally Mapasa hits out. Alcala gets to deuce. A drop by Alcala is hit out by Mapasa to give match point to Alcala.  Mapasa taps in a net shot to save the game at 22/20.

Girls Finals Mapasa v Alcala

Alcala gets to 4/1 in the 2nd set. Mapasa gets back at 2/4. Alcala is dominating at 6/2. Mapasa is not giving up yet. I wonder how many times these girls have played against each other. Mapasa keeps the deficit to 2 points at 4/6. Alcala is always ready to pounce on any net shots. Alcala moves ahead at 9/4. Mapasa gets a point but serves out getting her to 5/10. Alcala gets to 11/5 first. Mapasa retrieves a point but she has a long road ahead if she wants a 3 setter. She is now 6/12 behind. Alcala hits a return out but still stays in the lead at 7/14. Alcala does a cross drop to get to 15/8. She is moving Mapasa around and controlling the game.  Mapasa gets to 9/17 but servves into the net. Mapasa stays in the game by winning another point at 10/19. Alcala gets to match point at 20/10.  A cross drop is returned to the net giving Alcala the match.

(Left) Alcala, the winner, Ai Ling Zhang (Former world No.1)  Geraldine Brown, President BA and Runner up Mapasa

The Mixed Doubles:  Hafiz Faisal and Ruselli Hartawan (INA) v Putra Eka Rhoma and Lya Eraslita (INA)

This is an all Indonesian affair.  Hartawan and Faisal get to 11/9 first. F and H get to 14/9 after strong smashes. The defensive play is so strong by all players. F and H get to 15/9 before losing a point.

It looks like F and H are much stronger as they are dominating the play.  Rhoma and Eraslita are not giving up and they get to 13/17.  The game is closer at 18/16. R and E are catching up. They get another point to 17/18. The score is now 18/18. Hartawan's smashes are returned 4 times before she hits to the net giving R and E their first lead. They turn the game around and win the first set at 21/18. What a turn around for R and E.

Finals between Hartawan and Faisal v Rhoma and Eraslita

H and F are in the lead again in the 2nd set at 4/1. R and E soon catch up at 6/6.   This is a much closer game as the players are trading points.

F and H get to 11/6 first. E and R get back a few points to 8/11. Hartawan pounces on a stray shot to get a point. The deficit remains at 3 points. R and E try to reduce the deficit but still trail at 15/12. F and H get to 18/13.

E and R get 2 points at 14 and 15.

There is a 3rd set after Hartawan taps in a winner giving F and H a 21/16 win.

The 3rd set is at 5/4 for F and H. F and H remains at 7/6. Rhoma jumps smash 4 times to get a point. I keep saying the defence play is great. F and H get to 9/7.  R and E get to 10/11.

Rhoma has to smash 6 times to get to 11/14. F and H fight back at 15/12 and then to 18/12. F and H get to 19/12 after Eras hits the net.

Faisal does a strong smash to stay in the gme. There is a long rally before Faisal does a cross drop that just gets out. 

The game goes to F and H finally at 21/15.

The winners , Hartawan and Faisal and runners up with  Eraslita and Rhoma and the semifinalists with sponsor Lucy Yau

The winners and runner ups

The Boys Singles:  Fikri Ihsandi Hadmadi (INA) v Ari Januari (INA)

Jan is trailing at 5/8. Hadm gets to 9/6. Jan does a strong smash to get to 7/9. Hadm does 3 strong smashes that are returned easily by Jan before Hadm hits out. The score is now 10/10. Hadm gets to 11/10 first. Hadm is trying to break away and gets to 15/10.  Hadm does a trick cross that Jan fails to get. Hadm looks confident at 18/10. Jan claws back 2 vital points to close the deficit. He gets another point at 13/18.  Hadm gets to 20/13. He tries a smash to finish the set but it goes out. He finishes at 21/14.

Boys finals Hadmadi v Januari

The 2nd set is closer for the moment with Hadm in the lead at 5/3. Jan stays close at 5/6. Jan does a high jump smash to even at 6/6. Jan has to remain calm if he wants to get a  3 setter. Hadm gets to 11/9 first.

Jan evens up at 11/11 when Hadm is faulted. Jan puts on the pressure and gets the lead at 13/11. Hadm evens up at 13/13. He does a tap down from a weak return to regain the lead. Hadm smashes his way to 15/13. Jan gets a good return with a stretch that goes over the net and Hadm misses the return. Jan keeps close at 15/17 after Hadm smashes out. Hadm does a good smash to regain his 2 point lead.  Hadm gets to 20/17 after Jan hits out. Hadm wins when Jan hits the net from his drop shot.

Raymond Tan with Nick Kidd (Aus No. 1) with semifinalist A H  Yusrizal and Jonatan Cristie

Nick Kidd, Raymond Tan, Winner Hadamadi and Runner up Januari with the semifinalists

The Girls Doubles: Joy Lai and Jennifer Tam (Aus) v Lya Erasalita and Russelli Hartawan (INA)

INA is in the lead at 7/10. INA gets to 11/7 first. Lai and Tam need to calm down and focus on the job if they want to carry the winner's trophy. Aus is trailing 13/7. Come on girls. Aus gets back 2 points and then another to get to 10/13. Hartawn hits the net and the shuttle drops over for a point. INA is still leading at 17/12. INA continues forward at 19/12. Tam smashes to get a point but they are too late and lose the game at 21/13.

Aus gets the first point in the 2nd set.  They have to dig hard and concentrate. They get to 3/0 and then 4/0. They get another point when Eras hits the net with a smash. They get to 6 love after a good smash by Tam.  They get another point after a long rally. INA gets to 1/7.  INA gets 2 points in a row before Aus replies.   The score is now 4/9 in Aus's favour. The score reaches 11/7 for Aus. Lai does a drop to get Aus to 14/8.

Finals between L Erasalita and R Hartawan v Joy Lai and Jennifer Tam

The girls ready to pounce

INA gets to 11/15 but Aus replies strongly to get Aus to 17/12. Tam taps in another winner to get to 18/12.  INA gets 4 points and reduces the gap to 13/18. Aus gets to 20/15 but Lai hits the net. Tam hits the net again . After a long rally with Lai smashing, the return from INA hits the net. This goes to a thriller.

The girls are trading points. INA gets a 4/1 lead.  Lai smashes a winner for a point to get the deficit down to 3/5. Tam's strong smash just hits the tape. The girls are softening their shots as the smashes keep getting returned with interest from INA.  Aus has caught up and are at 7/7.  Aus lose 3 points in a row to 7/10.  INA gets to 11/7.

INA are leading at 14/8. Tam gets a smash in to reduce the loss. Lai does a drop that INA cannot reach to further reduce the gap.

Eras does a fake drop to get INA to 15/10.  The gap goes to 17/11 and then 18/11.  INA gets to 19/12. Tam smashes 3 times before getting a point. Lai gets a hard return on a smash and then gets a point. INA gets to match point at 20/14. INA smashes the final winner.

Kay Terry, Former Aus No. 1 with winners Erasalita and Hartawan, Runners up Jen Tam and Joy Lai with semi finalists L Josephine and Mapasa and Phing Teo, Eunice  (missing)

The winners with former Aus's No. 1 Kay Terry

The Boys doubles:  Hafiz Faisal and Putra Eka Rhoma (INA) v Pamoda Kaushika Hettiarachichi and Pamuditha Lahiru Ambegoda (SRI)

INA jumps to a 8/2 lead with their high jump smashes. INA gets to 11/2 first. SRI needs to work harder to catch up. INA retain the lead at 13/5 jumping to 18/7. They seem too strong for SRI and they win the first set at 21/7.

Faisal and Rhoma v Hettiarachchi and Ambegoda in the finals

The boys in the 2nd set

INA gets a 4/1 lead in the 2nd set. SRI are playing better staying at 3/6. Rhoma is smashing strongly and getting INA to 10/4. INA gets to 11/4. SRI reduces the gap to 7/14. INA is at 17/7 and then 19/7. The game is finally won at 21/10.

Paul Kong, Aus's Commonwealth player, Andrew Chai from Li Ning and semi finalists Yuzrizal and Tan V Hen , T Christop and M Alcala 

Paul Kong, Winners H Faisal and P Rhoma with runner's up P Ambegoda and P Hettiarachchi, Andrew Chai

This has been a great event for Western Australia. I hope all the players and their supporters return to Australia again for the next international competition. I have also enjoyed writing this blog. The overseas reader will need to know that I started blogging when my 2 boys started playing for Western Australia. The blog is to allow the parents who do not travel with the players to keep up to date on how their children are doing in the tournaments. My children are still young and have lots to learn and achieve. I hope that by my sons watching all the international players, it will inspire them to reach higher heights.

It has been an eye opener for me to see the different levels between State and International players. Australia does not get much funding for their players and I have often laughed after telling friends that Australia's players depend on M and F Funding which stands for Mother and Father Funding. Maybe that will all change in time. For the present, I can only continue to support my boys in their badminton dreams and aspirations.

Till I blog again, take care and reach for the best results in your next badminton game.

Our BAWA president Dr Judith Cousins being acknowledged by BA Geraldine Brown

Part of the successful Indonesian contingent with their coaches and managers

 

Part of the Sri Lankan team. They are still young and have great prospects

The Philippines team

Team Malaysia

Part of the Australian contingent

2nd day of the competition 2012 Li-Ning Australian Under 19 International Badminton Competition presented by Tan and Tan Lawyers Held at Perth Western Australia

Dear readers

I only got to the courts at 1115 am missing most of the morning matches. I was up till 3 am last night updating the blog.

For the Boys doubles:
Tan Vi Hen and A Yusrizal of Malaysia beat K Halambage and D Yatawara of Sri Lanka in 3 sets. The score was 21/15, 16/21 and 21/19.

P Ambegoda and P Hettiarchi of Sri Lanka also had a 3 setter against I Jaafar and Ai Wei Jian of Malaysia. The score was 21/16, 9/21 and 7/21.

In another quarter, S Hapuarchchi and R Ranatunga of Sri Lanka lost to M Alcala and T Matthew of the Philippines 21/15 and 21/16.

H Faisal and P Rhoma of Indonesia beat L De Silva and S De Silva 21/9 and 21/10. Most of these players specialise and play either doubles only or singles.

Eric Vuong and R Serasinghe also lost 14/21 and 7/21 to H Faisal and R Hartawan of Indonesia.

In the girls singles QF, M Alcala of the Philippines beat L Erasalita 22/20 and 21/16. Umangi Illangakoon beat L Josephine 22/20, 10/21 and 12/21 in a good fight.

Phing also missed out on the next stage when she lost 11/21 and 15/21 to S Mapasa of Indonesia. R Hartawan of Indonesia easily won against S Samarasinghe 21/5 and 21/6.

In the men's singles, A Yusrizal progressed to the next stage when he won Australia's Serasinghe 10/21, 21/8 and 19/21. Serasinghe must be feeling the pain after such a close 3 setter.

Guda and Tam v Alcala and T Co

Lai and Tam v P Teo and Eunice

Semi between Alcala and Christo v H Faisal and Hartawan

L Josephine v Illangakoon QF

Lai and Tam v S Illangakoon and S Samarasinghe QF

A Januari of Indonesia beat Malaysia's Ai we Jian at 21/11 and 21/2. J Chrsitie also progressed to the semi's beating Tan Vi Hen 21/19 and 21/14.

No. 1 seed Hadamadi beat I Jaafar easily at 21/13 and 21/13 to get to the semis.

The Girls doubles look more promising for Australia.

Jack Quan and Somerville are playing the top Indo pair in court 1.  Joy Lai and Jenn Tam have just started their first quarters game against Sri Lanka.

Phing Teo and Eunice are playing Olivia and Silvi which is an all WA affair. Phing and Eunice were too strong winning the other WA girls at 21/5 and 21/5. They progress to the semis.

There are 3 courts where Australia is represented in the quarters.

Joy Lai  and  Jennifer Tam lose the first set at 13/21. The 2nd set looks better as they are settled. Joy and Tam are down 11/16 for the moment. They just lost another point when the returns flops across the net.  The 2nd set is at 6/3 for Aus. They get another point after a long rally.

They are leading 12/11.  Sri Lanka gets a return to 12/13. This is becoming a close match. Aus gets to 15/13 and then to 16/13.  Aus loses 2 points in a row and gets to 16/15 but then gets another good point. Sri Lanka is not giving up. A shot just flops over for them to even up. Sri Lanka evens up again and then take the lead and the next point to get to match point. Lai recovers a point and then gets to deuce to save the match.

Tam serves short and gets Aus to danger.  Tam recovers and saves another point to 21/21.   Aus's return is dropped to the net and they then serve for a winner to get a 3 setter.  There has not been many 3 setters in this competition during the first day. There have been more 3 setters today as the competition gets stronger.

Aus gets a 2 love lead. and then gets to 4 love. Aus gets to 11/3 and they look comfortable. They lose a few points to give Sri Lanka 5/12 and then 6/12.  The next point is lost by Aus again before they get to 13/7 and then 14/7. Aus has to hang on. Sri Lanka leaps to 11/14 before Tam hits a few good shots to 16/11. Sri Lanka gets a point in return.  Sri Lanka does a good cross drop to get another point. They lose a point to Aus when a return goes out. Aus is now at 19/13. Aus gets to match point and Joy serves into the net. She redeems herself by tapping down a winner. Great, Aus has another team that advances into the semis.

Somerville and Guan lost the first set at 16/21. 

Somerville and Guan are going neck for neck with points at 18 all in the 2nd set. This could well be the actual finals match as the four girls look the strongest and are closer to being 19 years. Aus gets a point back to 19/20 but the last return goes to the net losing them the game.

Ash and Mclean have also lost to L Erasalita and R Hartawan of Indonesia in QF 2. Their score was 5 and 8.


Eric Vuong and Serasinghe is now playing the Indo pair in the first mixed doubles QF. In the next court is another Indo pair against Sri Lanka.

Eric and R. Serasinghe are neck to neck at 10/9. They then get to 12/15. They lose the first set 21/14.
The 2nd set again looks bad for Aus as they are trailing 4/9. Eric does a good cross to get a point to 6/10. They are trailing 13/6. They finally lose at 21/7.

Guan and Serasinghe are playing Seng Low and Buddhima in an all Aus quarters for the mixed doubles.  Well, at least another Australian pair will progress to the next stage.

Dan Guda and J Tam are now playing their QF against T Co and M Alcala of the Philippines. It is actually 3 Filipinos and 1 Aussie as Guda is actually Filipino. He migrated to Aus 3 years ago. Maybe Australia can poach a few more Filipino players especially their female players as they are quite strong.

Aus loses the first 3 points before they get 1 point. Aus is down 8/2 and need to catch up. Philippines get to 11/4 first. Aus is at 5/12 and still not moving into gear. Daniel's shots are not going over. I remember he did have rice today. They lose the first set at 21/9.

Aus loses a long rally to get to 1/3. They stay close at 4/5. The Filipinos get to 11/6. Aus still has a chance at 9/13. They are doing better at 11/14. They proceed to lose 2 points before Tam taps down a winner. Alcala is proving too strong. WA is down 12/19. Aus loses at 21/12. That's the end of Guda's run.

L Josephine v U Illangakoon

Mapasa and Josephine v Guan and Somerville

The tournament then goes to a recess for the players to prepare for their semi finals which starts at 4 pm.

I had to bring some of the boys for a movie as they did not want to sit around that long.

Now I have to juggle the time to get them back before the comp starts.

The draws for the after noon are:

Girls:
M V Alcala of Philippines v Umangi Illangakoon of Sri Lanka.
S Mapasa v R Hartawan both from Indonesia.

Boys:
A Yusrizal (Mas) v A Januari (Indo)
F Hadamadi v J Christie both from Indo.

Boy's doubles:

P Ambegoda and P Hettiarachchi of Sri Lanka v M Alcala and T Matthew Co of Philippines.
H Faisal and P Rhoma of Indo v Tan Vi Hen and A Yusrizal of Mas.

Girl's doubles:

Eunice and Phing (Aus) v Joy Lai and Jennifer Tam (Aus).
L Josephine and S Mapasa v L Erasalita and R Hartawan.

Mixed doubles:

T Matthew Co  and M Alcala (Phi) v P  Rhoma and L Erasalita (Ina)
H Faisal and R Hartawan (Ina) v S Serasinghe and G Somerville (Aus)

The semis start with Annie umpiring the game between Mapasa and Hartawan.



Alcala has started her game against Sri Lanka's Umangi. My bet is that it will be a Philippines and Indo finals.

Both games are quite close as the girls seem evenly matched.

Umangi is keeping close to Alcala at 6/7. I must say these girls are not as vocal as the girls that were competing in the Singapore Open. The girls there were screaming all the way.

Alcala gets to 11/7 first. Alcala streaks aheads to 15/9. She is now at 19/12 before winning the first set at 21/12.

Alcala gets to 6/1 quickly in her 2nd set. Umangi is trailing at 5/10. Alcala gets to 11 first. She then breaks away to 13/5. Alcala gets to 15/8 and then loses a point. She then gets to 18/9 and looks like she will close the game soon. She finishes at 21/11.

Mapasa gets to 11/9 first too.  Mapasa is also making her  move and gets to 14/10. She breaks away at 19/13. The court coverage of these players are amazing.  Hartawan is not giving up and gets 2 points back to get to 16/19.  Mapasa reaches 20 and tries to finish the game but she hits her smash into the net. Her next return also hits the net. Hartawan returns a serve that hits the tape losing her the first set.

Hartawan does a great get from metres away from the net but her return is smashed by Mapasa. Hartawan is keeping close at 5/4 and then gets another point to lead. Hartawan does a return and falls before losing the point. Mapasa regains the lead at 7/6.

Hartawan gets to 11/8 first. This will be a 3 setter. Mapasa is trying to get back into the game at 9/13. Hartawan gets to 14/10. Mapasa catches up at 12/14 but loses the next point. Hartawan forces her way into another point. You can see the determination in the girl's faces.

Hartawan finishes the 2nd set at 21/18 forcing a playoff. Mapasa triumphs in the 3rd set at 21/15. I missed all of the 3rd set as I had to pick the boys up from the cinemas.

P Ambegoda and P Hettiarachchi beat M Alcala and T Matthew 21/17 and 21/19.

Hadamadi v I Jaafar QF

S Serasinghe and Somerville v Seng Low and B Fernando QF

Josephine and Mapasa v L Erasalita and R Hartawan SemiF

Januari v J Christie

Yurizal and Tan Vi Hen v  Faizal and Rhoma Semi

In the boy's semis, Januari of INA is leading the game at 5/1 against Yusrizal of Mas.   Januari gets to 11/1 first. Yusrizal is not making any headway remaining at 15/1. The level of play is so different. These are kids who are nearly professional. Yusrizal finally gets 2 points in a row to get to 4/17. Yusrizal claws to 20/7 before losing at 21/7. The 2nd set seems closer as Yuzrisal is keeping it close at 2/6. Januari jumps smash an easy winner into the net to let Yuzrisal get a point. Yuzrisal is keeping up at 6/7. He draws even. The scores remain even at 8/8. The 2nd set is looking like a thriller unless Januari breaks away. Yusrizal gets to 11/10 first. He needs to dig in if he want a 3rd set. Januari breaks away at 16/12. He finishes the game at 21/17.


Phing and Eunice have started their game against Lai and Tam. Lai and Tam are wearing Australia uniforms while Eunice and Phing are wearing WA uniforms although Phing does have an Australian uniform. It shows the different levels. So can WA bring an upset. WA is sticking close at 5/7.  WA is still keeping Aus close at 7/8. As long as they stick close, WA has a chance. Aus is breaking away at 13/9.  WA lose a few points before getting 1 to 10/15.  WA just lost the first set at 21/10.


The 2nd set is at 6/6.  WA is suddenly looking at a 11/6 deficit. They are down 7/13.  Aus breaks away at 17/8.  WA finally loses at 21/8.

Serasinghe and Somerville v H Faisal and hartawan Semi 

The next semi finals is between L Josephine and Mapasa of Ina and also L Erasalita and R Hartawan of Ina.
Josephine and Mapasa are taller than their opponents. However they are down 5/7 to Eras and Hartawan. These 4 players have probably played against each other many matches before. Eras and Hartawan get to 11/7.  Mapasa and Josephine catch up to 10/12.  They start trailing at 11/16 again.  The defences of these girls are outstanding.  Hartawan smashes to the net and cannot finish  the game at 20/15. She finally does a cross court return to finish the first set.

In the 2nd set Eras and Hartawan are leading at 3/0. They extend the lead to 7/1. Eras and Hartawan get to 11/5. Mapasan forces Eras to smash at least 10 times to show her defensive skills. The final smash from Eras goes out to the delight of the crowd. This is more like an exhibition match. Their defence play is so good. They are testing each other and seeing who gets tired first. Eras and Hartawan get to 17/15.  They get to 19/13 and then finish at 21/13.


Hadamadi is starting his semi finals game against J Christie also of INA. The score is at 4/4 but Hadamadi is moving away to 8/4. Christie claws back to 6/9. Hadamadi is now leading at 16/13.  Christie continues to fight and gets to 16/18. He gets to 17/19. Christie flops a shot over the net to get another point. Hadamadi finally gets to 21/18. Hadamadi is at 5/1. He finishes the game at 21/10.

H Faisal and Rhoma from INA has just started against Tan Vi Hen and Yuzrisal from MSA. They are at 4/4. INA gets to 6/5. The smashes of these players are much faster than our boys. H Faisal and Rhoma won the game 21/14 and 21/11. I missed all that as I had to pick up my son's girlfriend from the depot.

The mixed doubles are starting. T Matthew Co and M Alcala from PHI will play P Rhoma and L Erasalita of INA. INA is at 15/6. INA is now leading 18/12. INA wins the first set. INA gets to 4/2 in the 2nd set. INA gets to 9/4.  The score is more even now at 12/12 as PHI steps up. INA smashes to get to 16/14.


G Somerville and Serasinghe are our last hope for the Mixed doubles. They are playing H Faisal and R Hartawan of INA. Aus gets to 4/1. They continue to climb at 9/4. INA gets back at 8/9. Aus reaches 11/8 first. Suddenly the score is tied at 11/11 as Aus loses 3 straight points. Aus is trailing 13/15.  Aus is now down 13/19. INA smashes and gets to 20/15.  They get a pt back and then another.  They finally lose at 18/21. The 2nd set has AUS trailing again at 5/7. INA gets to 11/6. Aus hangs in at 8/12. Aus wins a point after a long rally and INA hits the net. The score is still 10/14 for Aus. INA is up 16/11. Faizal does a high smash to get another point closer to the match. Aus loses at 21/11.

That means Aus only has 1 pair in the finals tomorrow for the girls doubles. The first game starts at 1030 am. See you then.

First day of competition 2012 Li-Ning Australian Under 19 International Badminton Competition presented by Tan and Tan Lawyers Held at Perth Western Australia

Dear friends and readers

Welcome to the first edition of the new blog for the 2012 Li Ning Australian U 19 Junior International presented by Tan and Tan Lawyers.

It was at the last minute that I decided to blog about the competition. With Judy's blessing, I thought , what the heck. I am here anyway. This will be a good record for the Australian players' foray into international level competition.

Daniel Guda who is Australia's No.1 17 boy is staying with us. He has been a delight to host.

We also have players from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia and the Philippines.

There are 43 boys in total and 20 girls.

Australia is fielding 21 boys. Indonesia has 5 boys and 4 girls. India has 1 boy and 1 girl. Malaysia has 6 players and the Philippines has 2 boys and 1 girl. The Sri Lankan contingent has 8 boys.

Jaz is the first off the block for the day.

Jaz is playing R Ranatunga from Sri Lanka. The score so far is 5/11 down for Jaz. Jaz has not found his groove yet.

The score is now 8/13. Jaz can't seem to find any weak points in his opponent's game. The Sri Lankan contingent is quite big.  He gets to 10/18. The Sri Lankan player is quite a big hitter. Jaz loses the first set at 21/11.

The 2nd set is at 2/7 and Jaz's shots are not getting in. He is keeping closer at 4/7 but goes down at 5/11 and then 10/21.

Ed Xu is playing Tan VH. He just lost in 2 sets too at 21/8 and 21/12. Our kids are getting great experience. For some, this is their first taste of competition at an international level.

Matthew Teo is also out in 2 sets playing to a much older boy. He just lost 21/5 and 21/5 to Pamuditha Lahiru Ambergoda.


Kevin Huynh went down to Sachin S De Silva in 2 sets too at 13/21 and 12/21.

Ryan Courtie is next. Ryan is only 11 but he is playing a 16 year old Pamoda K Hettiarachi. He gave his best but went down 21/9 and 21/9.

Benedict Xu just lost to Sawan Serasinghe  also of Australia, 13/21 and 14/21.

Tyz played the No. 1 seed Fikri Ihsandi Hadamadi from Indonesia and went down 21/3 and 21/4. He was also service faulted at least 4 times.

Alphonsus also went down 12/21 and 11/21.

Ashleigh just got out from the court. She gave a good fight but lost 21/11 and 21/11. Her mum said Ash could have won. There is this belief that our players have that they are not ready for the international stage.

Gavin Ho of Australia beat Dennis Zhao also of Australia 21/8 and 21/12.

Guda our no. Under 17 player is next on. He is playing A Mohd Shahrman Bakir. He is leading 5/1. He seems to be the only Australian player that has a chance in this competition for the boy's title. Most of the other boy's from Australia have been knocked out. The score is now 7/3. He keeps the lead at 9/5 and gets to 14/6.  He gets to 21/9 for the first set. Guda has played in several international competition and has more experience than the other Aus boys.

The 2nd set is closer at  14/12 to Guda. Guda reaches 20 first but loses a few points. The Malaysian boy catches up at 22/20.  Guda needs to re-focus.  He is leading 6/5 but the game is tight. He is still at 8/7. He gets to 11/8. Guda gets to 14/7 and then 16/7. He finishes the game at 21/8.

Kush is playing D Yatawara from Sri Lanka. He is down 6/17. He loses the first set at  21/8.  The 2nd set is better but he goes down at 21/14.

Joy Lai is also playing her game against Lya Erasalita from Indonesia. She is down at 4/6. The Indo player is much shorter but has power and accuracy. Joy is down 6/13. She gets back to 10/15 but loses at  21/12 and 21/9.

Eric Vuong from  Victoria is playing S Hapuarchchi from Sri Lanka. He just lost a heart breaking 23/25 in the first set. He goes on to lose 18/21 and you could feel his disappointment.

Andre Zopf of Victoria also lost to P Kaushika Hettiarachchi 21/17 and 21/9.

Mohd Suhaimi also lost to Ari Januari of Indonesia 2/21 and 2/21.

Ruwindi Serasinghe of Australia also lost 21/11 and 21/7 to Malvinne Alcala of the Philippines.

Raymond Sing lost to Tan Vi Hen of Malaysia 21/18 and 21/6.

Yap K Yong of Malaysia lost to P Lahiru Ambegoda of Sri Lanka 21/16 and 21/12.

Jennifer Tham from NSW is playing U Illangakoon from Sri Lanka. She just lost the first set at 21/8. She is leading 3/1 for the 2nd set. Can she turn it around.  She tried her best but could only manage 15/21.

Athi Selladurai of Aus also lost to Amirul Yusrizal of Malaysia 15/21 and 17/21.

Amos Yi is playing Ikmal Jaafar of Malaysia. The first game was lost at 14/21 and the 2nd game at 5/21.

Gronya had to do a walkover as she is injured.

Mark Shelley Alcala of Phillippines beat Ravindu K Ranatunga 21/15 and 21/17. Apparently he is a rising star in the Phillippines and is only turning 13 in a few mths time. But I note he is already growing a moustache?

Seng Low of Australia  lost to Ai Wei Jian of Malaysia 21/10 and 21/13.

Theodore M Christop of the Phillipines  lost to L Madusaha De Silva 19/21 and 18/21.

Phing is starting her game against M Baruwalage of Sri Lanka. She starts with a 3/1 lead. She gets to 7/3. Sri Lanka catches up to 6/8. Phing gets to 12/7 and seems confident. She gets to 16/10. She loses a sure winner and hits it out. Sri Lanka catches up to 15/19. Phing gets to game point and wins at 21/17.


The 2nd set looks like a tougher fight for Phing. She is just leading at 6/5.  She stays calm and gets to 11/7 first. She retains the lead at 14/10. She finished the game at 21/12.

Jacqueline Guan from Victoria is also starting her game against R Hartawan of Indonesia. Jack is seeded 2 for the competition. She is leading 5/1. She gets to 15/12. The game is close as both girls seem evenly matched. Indonesia gets to 15/17. They are suddenly even at 19 all. Indonesia gets to match point first. Jack hits the return to the net and loses the set at 19/21.She needs to stay focused and fight back.  The second set is even tougher.


Jack gets to 6/2 in the 2nd set.  She keeps the lead at 7/4 and gets to 10/7. She gets to 11 first.  Can she keep Australia in play? She gets to 15/10. The score is closer at 12/16 to Jack. She loses 2 points in a row. Indo gets to 15/17 and then 16/17. They now draw even. The score is  now 18 all. Jack loses the lead.  Indo falls but Jack's return net shot goes out giving Indo the match advantage. They get to 21/20 and then 21/21. Indo gets the lead again and the match point. They deuce again.   Indo gets the match point again but hits the net. Indo gets match point again before Jack hits the shuttle out. What a waste. Jack must be devastated. I do not know her but I am sure I can feel her pain.

Mari Clair Mclean of Australia was also outplayed by Sachini Samarasinghe of Sri Lanka getting 3 and 6 pts

Jaz and Tyz were not able to beat their doubles opponents K Halambage and D Yatawara of Sri Lanka. They went down 21/13 and 21/9.

Amos Yi and Andre Zopf had a better game but still went down fighting 21/12 and 21/18.

The smallest doubles team were Matthew Teo and Ryan Courtie both being less than 13 years old. The bigger boys being Ikmal Jaafar and Ai We Jian played sportingly with the smaller boys.  The smaller boys managed 9/21 and 5/21.

Andrew Belcher and Kush also tried their best but could not beat S Hapuarchchi and R Ranatunga of Sri Lanka. They got 16 and 11 points.

Eric Vuong and A Selladurai managed 15 and 13 against M S Alcala and Theoidore M Chrisop Co.

Alphonsus and Benedict are on court now against P Ambegoda and P Hettiarachchi of Sri Lanka.

They are down 7 points love before getting 1 pt. They get to 2/10 and have to work harder. Sri Lanka gets to 11/3. Sri Lanka gets the first set 21/12.

The 2nd game is better as Benedict has woken up. It is now 7/8 with Sri Lanka in the lead. The boys draw at 8/8. Sri Lanka gets to 11/8.  Sri Lanka then puts on the engine and gets to 16/9. Sri Lanka win the game at 21/12.

Guda and Seng Low are fighting  Tan Vi Hen and A Yusrizal of Malaysia. They have lost the first set. The 2nd set is looking better as they are leading 3/1. After a few bad moves they are down 5/3. Come on boys, move up a gear for Australia. Malaysia gets to 11 first. Aus is down 14/6.  They claw to 9/17. They lose at 21/10.

Jaz v R Ranatunga of Sri Lanka

Edmund v Tan V Hen of Malaysia

Tyz v the No. 1 seed from Indo

Gavin Ho of Victoria managed 9 pts on both sets against Ikmal Jaafar of Malaysia.


Victoria Phan has pulled out because of an injury. Apparently if you do not get a medical cert, you can be fined up till $750.

Ferdinand Buddhma is playing S Mapasa of Indonesia. She managed to get 11 points in the first set. The 2nd set is not looking better as her pressured returns are going out.  She gets 7 pts in the 2nd set. She eventually loses 11/21 and 7/21.

Ben Xu v Serasinghe of Aus

Alphonsus v Ah Yusrizal of Malaysia

Mohd Suhaimi v A Januari of Indonesia

Guda plays his 3rd round game against Jonathan Cristie of Indonesia. He tries his best but loses at 21/10 and 21/13. The top boy from Australia is now out of the competition for the singles title.

Tan Vi Hen of Malaysia beat Damitha Yatawara 21/15 and 22/20.

Ash and Jaz v the Sri Lankans

Tyz and Eunice vs the Indos

Ryan and Matthew, the youngest players

The committee hard at work

The next game was Jaz and Ash's mixed doubles against P Lahiru Ambegoda and M D Baruwalage of Sri Lanka. Jaz and Ash were leading most of the way till they reached 18. Sri Lanka then capitalise on several mistakes and took the first set at 21/18. Jaz and ash lost their confidence and went to lose the 2nd set 21/7. Jaz is now out of the competition and is feeling really sad. 

Tyz and Eunice played P Rhoma and Lya Erasalita of Indonesia. Indonesia was too strong and beat them 21/7 and 21/9.

Ashleigh v Baruwalage of Sri Lanka

Guda v J Christie of Indo

Edmund Xu and Mari Mclean also went down to H Faisal and Ruseli Hartawan of Indonesia 21/7 and 21/9.

Andre Zopf and Joy Lai had a better fight against Eric Vuong and R Serasinghe also of Australia. However they still lost 21/17, 17/21 and 21/11. At least another Aus team proceeds to the next stage. Sawan Serasinghe and Gronya also raised the Aus flag by beating D Yatawara and U Illangakon of Sri Lanka 23/21 and 21/14.

Theodore Christop and M A Venice Alcala of Philippines beat Athi Selladurai and Jack Guan 21/13 and 21/16.

Amos Yi and Phing also lost to Seng Low and Buddhima Fernando 21/12 and 21/16. At least another Aus tream proceeds.

Daniel Guda and Jennifer Tam did us proud by beating P Hettiarachchi and S Samarasinghe 18/21, 21/10 and 21/16.  Daniel gets to play another day and was so happy.

It has been a painful day for the Australian players. I told my wife it was like Gallipolli with our players dropping out of contention on the first day. This is the cruel reality of internaoitnal competition. Unfortunately we are playing at a different playing field. I spoke to the Indonesian coach and he told me that the players from his team train 5 days a week. They train in the morning and the afternoon. They live in dorms away from their families after selection by the private clubs that sponsor the players. The player's parents get paid for missing their children and seeing them during the weekend. On the other hand, us parents in Australia pay for the priviledge of getting our children trained. We really need to do something about funding.

The Philippines players are also getting better funding as the country's Vice President is also the chairperson for the badminton association.  Lots of money is being poured into their junior program. I do not know the story for the Sri Lankan, Malaysian or Indian team yet.

To make things worse, at the end of the matches, my son Jazton and his partner Ash were selected for random drug testing. This is the first time he has taken part in an international competition and he gets selected out of a random number of 4 players from Australia.

I had to accompany him as he is still a minor. The drug testing process was quite complicated and involved.

At the end of the day, Guda and my boys decided they had not played enough. They asked me to bring them to Samson to play with Andrew Chai's club members.

We did not get home till 1130 pm and supper had to be served. Amos also decided he wanted to spend the night at the Tan's.

Joy Lai vs Indo, can you see the beautiful umpire seated to the left