2nd Match Softball 18th Asian Games 2018

18th  Asian Games Jakarta

Palembang 2018

CHINESE BEAT THE  INDONESIA

In

Asian Games 2018

Antara/Palembang

The Indonesian women's softball team suffered a crushing defeat from the Chinese team 0-14 in the first match of women’s softball on Sunday, which resulted in them using the "Mercy Rule". The match was a tough one for the Indonesian team, considering China is ranked 12th in the world this year.

The Mercy Rule ends a two-competitor sports competition earlier than the scheduled endpoint if one competitor has a very large and apparently insurmountable lead over the other. It is called the Mercy Rule because it spares the losing team further humiliation. It is especially common in baseball and softball, where there is no game clock and a dominant team could in theory continue an inning forever.

With smaller body postures and slower running speeds, the Indonesian players found it difficult to anticipate hits by the Chinese players and oftentimes failed to make catches.

"Overall, I think Indonesia has shown a lot of improvement in terms of aggressiveness. But it needs to improve its players’ basic skills and other aspects," said China’s coach, Teresa Wilson.

Since the first inning, Indonesia was already behind 0-6 from China. The late response of the Indonesian players to the Chinese team’s hits meant the latter could easily get on base.

Difficult matches against big teams like China, however, should not make the Indonesian players quiver. As Indonesian team coach Yuliastono Sukamad said, meeting a strong team is an advantage for Indonesia.

"After this, we will play against Japan, runner-up of the world championship. It will be an advantage for us, so our players can enjoy the match without pressure," he said.

-AG Media and PR in cooperation with The Jakarta Post