KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, 16 August 2007 — Unfancied Indian Anup Sridhar beat Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia yesterday in the first major upset of the World Badminton Championships that caught even the victor by surprise.
The unseeded Sridhar, who is 41st in world ranking, defeated World No. 10 Taufik — the 2005 World Championship winner — 21-14, 24-26, 22-20 after a 73-minute duel in the second round of the championships being played at the Putra Stadium.
“I couldn’t believe it. I never expected to beat the Olympic champion and eighth-seeded player in this tournament,” Sridhar said after the match, played on the day India celebrated the 60th anniversary of its independence.
“Taufik was not playing too bad but I played well today,” said Sridhar. “I really want to prove something to my coach,” he said, referring to Prakash Padukone, the Indian badminton legend who won the Commonwealth Games gold medal in 1978 and the All England Championship in 1980 before retiring in 1988.
Taufik left the stadium without talking to reporters.
Sridhar will play Malaysia’s Mohammad Hafiz Hashim, the tournament’s 13th seed, in a clash of similar styles where the emphasis is on defense and the delicate net play.
The Indonesians had some consolation that two of their remaining men’s singles challengers, Simon Santoso and Sony Dwi Kuncoro, are still in the fight.
Kuncoro, a two-time Asian Championship winner and the 9th seed, beat Japan’s Yousuke Nakanishi 21-15, 21-16 in a second round match to set up a meeting with Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei, the No. 2 seed, in the pre-quarterfinal. Santoso, Indonesia’s third ranked singles player, beat Spain’s Pablo Abian 21-18, 21-15 and will play Denmark’s Peter Gade for a place in the quarterfinals.
Gade, seeded fifth in the championship and a former losing finalist, overcame Hong Kong’s Chan Yan Kit 21-18, 25-23 to book his place in the last 16. “Taufik’s loss today will serve as a reminder to everyone that there is no easy matches in the World Championship,” said Gade. The world’s No. 1 and 2 women’s singles players, China’s Zhang Ning and Xie Xinfang respectively, opened their campaign on a bright note.
Xinfang, the defending champion, scored an easy 21-12, 21-7 win over Portugal’s Ana Moura while Zhang Ning, the 2004 Athens Olympic Games singles gold medalist, beat Korea’s Soo Young-janfg 21-9, 21-14 to advance to the third round.
Also through to the third round is Germany’s Xu Huaiwen, the No. 3 seed who beat Indonesia’s Adriyanti Firdasari 21-17, 22-20. Malaysia’s No. 1 men’s pair of Koo Kim Keat and Tan Boon Heong beat Germany’s Roman Spitko and Michael Fuchs 21-12, 21-13 in 25 minutes to book their place in the last 16.
