Well, I won't call him a "great mixed player". Yes, I also thought about not "burying" Nova so quickly, maybe the time is not yet for him. Maybe after ZJ and GaoL are gone??..
Anyway, here's his playing record so far(his last 7 were with Lilyana and first 7 were with Vita).
http://www.worldbadminton.net/Portal/desktopmodules/mbiography.asp?pnumber=7934
His record with Lilyana is *slightly* better as he was able to get to 3(SFs), 2 (QFs), 1 Final, and 1 Winner. Whilst with Vita he was able to get to 2(QFs), 3(SFs), 1(1/16) and 1 Winner.
Date Event Name Round
5 Apr 2005 YONEX OPEN JAPAN 2005 Quarter-Finals
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15 Mar 2005 SWISS OPEN 2005 Gold Medal Final
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8 Mar 2005 YONEX ALL ENGLAND OPEN 2005 Semi-Finals
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25 Jan 2005 NOONNOPPI KOREA OPEN 2005 Semi-Finals
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13 Dec 2004 DJARUM INDONESIA OPEN 2004 Quarter-Finals
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15 Nov 2004 AVIVA OPEN SINGAPORE 2004 Winner
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9 Nov 2004 CHINA OPEN 2004 Semi-Finals
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14 Aug 2004 OLYMPIC GAMES 2004 Quarter-Finals
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29 Jun 2004 Proton-Eon MALAYSIA OPEN 2004 Semi-Finals
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20 Apr 2004 Asian Championships 2004 Semi-Finals
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6 Apr 2004 YONEX OPEN JAPAN 2004 Winner
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30 Mar 2004 NOONNOPPI KOREA OPEN 2004 Quarter-Finals
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9 Mar 2004 YONEX ALL ENGLAND OPEN 2004 Semi-Finals
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2 Mar 2004 SWISS OPEN 2004 1/16
The thing is, this is his 2nd time playing and lost in the Finals after having a lead. The last time, as i mentioned before, was when he played and lost in straight sets against Robertson/Emms in the Swiss Final. A 3* tournament and the pair which he defeated a few times before ..
seven said:
I think we shouldn't judge and "burry" Nova Widianto after just one match (this final), as everyone agreed he didn't play well in this match.
Nova Widianto is a great MX player and has done wonders before (including SF against Denmark) so don't be too harsh with him!