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INDONESIA WON YONEX ALL ENGLAND 2022 BADMINTON MEN'S DOUBLES

Bagas Maulana and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri successfully won Yonex All England 2022 on March 20, 2022, and got the president, Jokowi to praise their performance.

24.03.2022
BY WILHEMINA BOWEN
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Yonex All England Open Badminton Championship 2022 was entered by many countries, with 414 entries from roughly 40 countries. For its women's singles, compared to the other categories, was the most attended with 101 entries from 35 countries. 

With a total prize accumulated to almost USD 1,000,000, the event is an international annual and prestigious event held at Arena Birmingham in Birmingham, England. This year's total prize money pools US$990,000 with the distribution following the Badminton World Federation (BWF) regulation.

One of the oldest badminton tournaments, the event has been held since 1899 and has had various sponsors. It seems that numerous people consider this event as important to be held. 

On March 20, 2022, Indonesia once again won an international game. Representing Indonesia's name, Bagas Maulana and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri won the men's double championship with 21-19 and 21-13 in Q1 and Q2, respectively. 

 
 
 
 
 
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Game recap
After defeating Hendra Setiawan and Mohammad Ahsan in the finals, Bagas and Fikri brought home the trophy and US$73,260. It was only in the tournament that the two met for the first time. 

Previously, Hendra and Ahsan were seeded given that they have had several world championship experiences before the 2022 game. The couple that was nicknamed The Daddies won the 2014 and 2019 All England championships. They also won the 2018 Singapore Open Badminton tournament. 

Meanwhile, Bagas and Fikri are only at the 28th position. However, during the 2022 championship game, Fikri and Bagas were superior against Hendra and Ahsan with 21-19 and 21-13 after competing for 36 minutes. 

In the first quarter, Fikri and Bagas were immediately leading. However, Hendra and Ahsan later successfully caught up and draw the score with 8-8. For another two times, their score was a draw with 14-14 and 16-16 as the game was intensified. In the final Q1 score, Fikir and Bagas had 21-19.

Entering the second quarter, Hendra and Ahsan were leading. With 8-8, Bagas and Fikri were on fire which led to the final winning game for the two with the score of 21-13. 

The praise from President Jokowi
Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, joined in the celebration. Through his official media account, he tweeted on March 20: "A surprise cam from the All England Open Badminton Championship 2022 in Birmingham, English, tonight."

"The young Indonesian men's doubles who just made their debut at the All England, Muhammad Shohibul Fikri / Bagas Maulana, won by beating Mohammad Ahsan / Hendra Setiawan. Congratulations," Jokowi posted while including the photos of the champions. 

"I don't know what to say. I've been dreaming of this moment since I was nine years old," Fikri said after the All England final. Fikri admitted that he was rather nervous the previous day.

“Yesterday, we were very nervous. Yesterday, we also imagined that we would win the title. Once we got on the court today, I was able to calm down. We try to remind each other to be brave and consistent until the end," Fikri said referring to his play partner. 

"I still can't speak, I'm touched, I can't believe it, I'm happy and proud mixed into one. I didn't expect to be on the highest podium. When the match was over I didn't know what it was like anymore," said Bagas. 

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