Bali: Jonatan Christie held his nerve to deliver the Musica Champions’ third consecutive Djarum Superliga title after defeating Djarum Kudus’ Ihsan Maulana Mustofa in a dramatic fifth match of the Superliga men’s team final.
World No. 82 Jonatan Christie defeated Ihsan Maulana Mustofa, during a tense clash that ended 14-21, 21-11, 21-18 in Bali and lasted 64 minutes.
Jonatan sealed the victory after Djarum Kudus’ Fran Kurinawan/Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo had pushed the encounter to a fifth match by defeating Marcus Fernaldi Gideon/Wahyu Nayaka Arya P of Musica Champions in straight sets in the second men’s doubles match.
Wahyu told reporters after the match that he was playing through injury.
“I suffered an ankle injury earlier. But I continued to play my best because I do not want to give up so easily,” said Wahyu.
The Djarum Superliga defending champions got off to a shaky start when Simon Santoso lost the first men’s singles match to Korean player Son Wan Ho of Djarum Kudus 21-16, 9-21, 17-21. Luckily, first men’s doubles pair of Lee Yong Dae/Fajar Alfian were riding to the rescue when they overcame a spirited fight from Mohammad Ahsan/Berry Angriawan to clinch the three-set thriller 16-21,21-14, 21-15 in 70 minutes.
Roared on by a vociferous crowd, veteran Lee Hyun-Il stepped up a gear in the second men’s singles match as he trounced Dionysius Hayom Rumbaka 21-10, 21-7 in 40 minutes to put Musica Champions ahead with 2-1.
Musica Champions’ team manager Effendy Widjaja was happy with the way his team played.
“As I said earlier, the four teams that qualified for the semifinals were strong contenders for the championships. I believed we were the most cohesive teams in the tournament, and we were lucky to emerge as the winner in today tie,” said Effendy.
A relieved Jonatan was ecstatic after his win.
“The wind drift affected my game in the first set. I changed my strategy, the audience and their remarkable support was crucial for my wins in the second and third set,” said Jonatan.
