badminton Match 18th Asian Games Jakarta Palembang 2018

18th  Asian Games Jakarta

Palembang 2018

Indonesia Win Gold In badminton Match

In

Asian Games 2018

Antara/Palembang/ Jakarta

Indonesian shuttler Jonatan Christie, nicknamed Jojo, won the men’s singles gold after beating Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien Chen at the Istora Gelora Bung Karno badminton stadium in Jakarta on Tuesday afternoon.

The victory was long overdue for Indonesia, which has not won a gold medal in the men’s singles at the Asian Games since Taufik Hidayat 12 years ago.

Jonatan needed three sets to defeat his opponent, with the match finishing with a score line of 21-18, 20-22, 21-15.

The first game was tight, with Jonatan and Chou Tien trading the lead.

A sharp smash by Jonatan saw him reclaim the lead 9-8, which grew to 13-10.

However, Chou Tien, the 2018 Singapore Open champion, recovered ground, locking the scores up at 15-15.

However, Jonatan once again took control to lead 20-17. Playing for game point, Jonatan hit the net, giving his opponent another chance. However, in the next point Chou Tien hit the net giving Jonatan the first game.

The second game was narrowly won by Chou Tien after Jonatan failed take golden opportunities to win critical points.

Chou Tien dominated the beginning of the game, leading 5-10. However, slowly but surely, Jonatan began to penetrate Chou Tien’s defense with sharp shots.

The 20-year-old managed to real in the deficit, almost drawing level at 11-12. Chou Tien then regained his composure to take his lead out to 16-20.

Jonatan, however, refused to relent, and prevented Chou Tien from winning game point. With the scores locked at 20-20, a chant of "Jojo can ... Jojo can ... Jojo can" rose from the crowd.

Chou Tien countered with a hard smash that Jonatan could not return. The atmosphere was tense, with the audience shouting, "Finish it... finish it.... finish it"

However, Jonatan’s smash hit the net, handing Chou Tien the game 20-22.

With everything on the line in the third game, Jonatan regained his composure and opened up at early 11-7 lead. Jonatan then maintained control for the remainder of the game winning 21-15.

Jonatan celebrated by taking off his shirt, with