First title: Indonesian men’ single shuttler Jonatan Christie poses with his trophy after winning the Super 750 series French Open badminton tournament in Rennes, France, on Sunday. Jonatan defeated Li Shi Feng of China in a rubber-game 16-21, 21-15, 21-14. (Courtesy of Badminton Indonesia/-)
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ndonesian men’s singles badminton player Jonatan Christie secured the 2023 French Open title after defeating China’s representative, Li Shi Feng, in Rennes, France, on Sunday night.
“Thank God, because this is my first title at the Super 750 level that I’ve been waiting for. I’ve been in the final several times but haven’t been able to win,” said Jonatan.
The match marked Jonatan’s fourth victory over Li, who ranks fifth in the world, in the entire record of meetings between the two players. Jonatan, the world’s number six, admitted that it was not an easy game.
“It wasn’t easy, I was a bit tense at the beginning of the match. I made a lot of unforced errors. In the second game I made improvements by playing more neatly and trying to make my opponent run a lot,” he added.
From the start of the match, Li delivered shots that were difficult for Jonatan to counter. As a result, Jonatan lost the first game 21-16.
However, in the second game, Jonatan adjusted his gameplay. He made many saves from Li’s sharp attacks.
Jonathan counterattacked Li with a drop shot and ended with a smash. The second game was Jonatan’s, ending with 21-15.
In the decider, the game between Jonatan and Li became tougher as they chased points until the middle of the game. The rubber set ended with a 21-14 victory for the Indonesian.
Also reaching the final stage was Indonesian men’s doubles pair Muhammad Shohibul Fikri and Bagas Maulana who faced Danish pair Kim Astrup and Anders Rasmussen.
The Indonesians, who ranked number 13, were no match for the world’s number six pair, who won the title 21-14, 10-21 and 18-21.
