Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI) has kicked off its ‘Home Tournament’ which bears a total prize pool of 500 million Indonesian Rupiah (35,359 USD). There have been no BWF tournaments for the last 3 months due to the global pandemic, PBSI’s home tournament is one of the first major tournaments to be staged which will feature top badminton players (from Indonesia).

“We feel really grateful that, in the middle of this pandemic, our badminton team got attention and support from the government, sponsors, and also badminton enthusiasts. We are able to keep running the national camp and this home tournament because of teamwork, at the same time we must be careful and follow the health protocol given by the government,” PBSI’s Head of the Development and Achievement Division Susy Susanti was quoted as saying on its official website.

The event is held without any spectators. The live stream of the tournament can be viewed through Mola TV website and their associated mobile apps.

Following is the schedule for PBSI’s Home Tournament:

Men’s doubles: June 24-26, 2020

Mixed doubles: 1-3 July, 2020

Men’s singles: July 8-10, 2020

Women’s doubles: July 15-17, 2020

Women’s singles: July 22-24, 2020

Doubles players have been broken up from their usual partners for the tournament, this has made the matchups more interesting for the viewers. A round-robin format will be used for the tournament without any elimination stage; the player or pair to collect the most points (wins) in the round-robin playoffs wins the tournament.

Marcus Fernaldi Gideon is paired with Muhammad Shohibul Fikri while Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo is paired with Moh. Reza Pahlevi Isfahani. Likewise, Mohammad Ahsan  and Hendra Setiawan have also been split up for this tournament. Ahsan is paired with Leo Rolly Carnando while Hendra is paired with Pramudya Kusumawardana.

“The pairs are separated based on the coaches’ assessment because the top three men’s doubles pairs are extremely strong. We also want to help the junior players gain more experience, the senior players can guide them. The matches will be more fun, the atmosphere is different from the usual scene,” Susy added.

Senior player Hendra Setiawan seconded Susy’s comment and reiterated that this is a good opportunity for the young players to learn from the seniors.

“This tournament will benefit the players a lot, that we can feel the tournament atmosphere once again. We haven’t competed for a long time, and surely the feeling of competitiveness slowly begins to disappear. And, this internal tournament can also get rid of boredom,” Hendra added.

Here are the results of the matches from the first day of the Home Tournament:

Session 1

Hendra Setiawan / Pramudya Kusumawardana vs Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo / Moh. Reza Pahlevi Isfahani 21-18 13-21 19-21

Marcus Fernaldi Gideon / Muhammad Shohibul Fikri vs Mohammad Ahsan / Leo Rolly Carnando 21-11 14-21 23-21

Fajar Alfian / Yeremia Erich Yoche Yacob Rambitan vs Daniel Marthin / Muhammad Rian Ardianto 21-15 21-17

Session 2

Hendra Setiawan / Pramudya Kusumawardana vs Mohammad Ahsan / Leo Rolly Carnando 21-16 21-11

Muhammad Rian Ardianto / Daniel Marthin vs Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo / Moh. Reza Pahlevi Isfahani 14-21 18-21

Marcus Fernaldi Gideon / Muhammad Shohibul Fikri vs Fajar Alfian / Yeremia Erich Yoche Yacob Rambitan 15-21 20-22