MALAYSIA 1 INDONESIA 3 FIRST SINGLES WONG CHOONG HANN lost to SONY DWI KUNCORO 15-12, 2-15, 6-15 CHOONG Hann shrugged off a slow start to keep pace with Sony, who looked very stable. The Indonesian led 8-3 but Choong Hann clawed back and was engaged with Sony in a neck-to-neck fight. Trailing 12-13, Sony struck a smash wide but it was called in by the linesman. The umpire over- ruled the call and Sony protested. The referee was called in and he upheld the umpire's decision. Choong Hann went on to wrap up the game. Sony came back strongly in the one-sided second game to force the rubber. In the decider, Sony was in control even though the game was tight. When the score stood at 5-5, Choong Hann began making the mistake and lift- ing the shuttle for Sony to kill with cross-court smashes. And the Indonesian kept moving up, dropping one more point to seal the match. FIRST DOUBLES CHOONG TAN FOOK-LEE WAN WAH bt LULUK HADIYANTO-ALVEN YULIANTO 15-12, 15-6 LULUK-Alven got off to an impressive start, racing to an 8-3 lead in the first game. It was a fast-paced game but the Malaysians, determined to make it count in their fifth outing in the Finals, pegged the Indonesians back with a fast counter-attacking game and levelled the score at 10-10. Tan Fook's smashes were sharp and accurate and Wan Wah's played intelligently to steal the points for a 15-12 win. The Malaysians held the upper hand in the second game and were never threatened at all. They raced to a 9-2 lead as Luluk-Alven found no answers to alternate smashes by Tan Fook and Wan Wah. The Indonesians attempted to stage a fightback when trailing 3-13 but it lasted briefly and Tan Fook-Wan Wah dropped three more points before romping home. SECOND SINGLES MOHD ROSLIN HASHIM lost to TAUFIK HIDAYAT 10-15, 2-15 AN aggressive Roslin raced to a 4-0 lead. But Taufik, known for his slow starts, came alive to run past Roslin, taking a 9-5 lead. The fighting Roslin did not give up. He got back into the game, attacking with several stinging smashes. But he muffed some open chances in his eagerness to collect points that allowed Taufik to finish off the game at 15-10. In the second game, a fiery Taufik got into top gear from the start and his jumping smashes found the mark. Roslin simply had no answer to Taufik's power play. The Indonesian raced to a 6-1 lead, then 12-2 before wrapping up the match easily. SECOND DOUBLES CHEW CHOON ENG-KOO KIEN KEAT lost to FLANDI LIMPELE-ENG HIAN 9-15, 15-13, 12-15 THE Malaysians started off well, taking a 4-0 lead. But the former world number one pair of Flandi- Eng Hian got back into the game, taking a 9-5 lead and won it easily 15-9. It all looked as if an easy victory was on the cards when the Indonesians took a 13-6 lead in the second. Then, the amazing Malaysians comeback began as they clawed back to level it at 13-13. Kien Keat was sharp with his smashes while Choon Eng was brilliant at the front. Together, they blasted past the stunned Indons 15-13. It was a catch-up game in the rubber game before the Indonesians pulled away at 14-9, with Choon Eng often their target. The fighting Malaysians did not give up and piled on the pressure, gaining three straight points. But that was as far as they got. They lost 12-15. TheStar
