Indonesia won the Asian Games men’s badminton team gold after recovering from a 2-0 deficit to beat defending champions China 3-2 in the final at Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium in Aichi, according to The Star.
The report said Moh Zaki Ubaidillah secured the deciding fifth rubber, defeating Weng Hongyang 23-21, 21-13. His victory completed Indonesia’s comeback and ended a 28-year wait for the men’s team title, which the country had last won at Bangkok 1998.
Indonesia’s success also stopped China from retaining the title. The Star reported that China had been seeking a third consecutive men’s team crown after victories at Jakarta-Palembang 2018 and Hangzhou 2022.
China take early control before Indonesia respond
China moved 2-0 ahead through the opening two rubbers, leaving Indonesia needing to win each of the remaining matches. The Star reported that Jonatan Christie lost 13-21, 18-21 to Shi Yuqi, with the Indonesian player remaining winless in the team event.
China then extended their advantage when Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang beat Fajar Alfian and Shohibul Fikri 22-20, 19-21, 21-14. That result left the defending champions one match from retaining the gold medal.
Indonesia’s recovery began in the third rubber, where Alwi Farhan beat Li Shifeng 23-21, 15-21, 21-16. The three-game victory kept the final alive after Farhan regained control in the deciding game.
Farhan’s result meant Indonesia had reduced the gap to 2-1, but the team still needed victories in both remaining rubbers to overturn China’s early advantage. The score also ensured that the second doubles contest, rather than being a potential title-clincher for China, became the match which could force a deciding singles rubber. Indonesia’s players then delivered the three wins required after the opening two defeats.
Leo Rolly Carnando and Daniel Marthin then brought Indonesia level at 2-2. The pair defeated He Jiting and Liu Yi 23-21, 21-10, meaning the team title would be decided by the final singles match.
The comeback required Indonesia to win three successive rubbers after China had taken the opening singles and doubles matches. Farhan’s victory began with a 23-21 opening game before Li levelled the contest 21-15, while Farhan won the deciding game 21-16. Carnando and Marthin also had to negotiate a close first game against He and Liu, taking it 23-21, before extending the final with a 21-10 second game. Ubaidillah then completed the sequence with his straight-games win over Weng in the fifth rubber.
Ubaidillah decides a five-rubber final
Ubaidillah’s win over Weng followed a close opening game. The Star reported that he took it 23-21 before winning the second game 21-13 to seal Indonesia’s gold.
The doubles result from Carnando and Marthin established the decider after the pair won both games against He and Liu. Their 21-10 second game gave Indonesia its second consecutive rubber and left the overall score at 2-2, after China had led by two matches. Ubaidillah then won both games against Weng, ensuring Indonesia completed the recovery without the final going beyond the fifth rubber.
Indonesia’s previous men’s team title had come in Bangkok in 1998, when The Star reported that it also beat China in the final. The Aichi result therefore ended the 28-year gap between Indonesia’s men’s team gold medals while denying China the consecutive-title landmark described by the report.
The result represented Indonesia’s first Asian Games gold medal of the Aichi-Nagoya competition, which had begun on September 19, according to The Star. The Star framed the result as a response to Indonesia’s Thomas Cup disappointment in Horsens, where the side did not reach the quarter-finals in April.