Badminton: Asians serve up treat but locals still make mark

Hong Kong's Agus Hariyanto made it look all too easy when winning the Waikato International badminton men's singles title in Hamilton yesterday.

Hariyanto, 26, the tournament top seed and ranked No 9 in the world, beat second seed and world No 13 Hidetaka Yamada, of Japan, 15-6, 15-8.

In the women's event, top seed and world No 9 Kanako Yonekura, of Japan, beat third seed and compatriot Kaori Mori in straight games.

The tournament boasted a strong field because a large Japanese contingent used the event as a replacement for the tournaments postponed in Asia due to the Sars virus.

New Zealanders still managed to shine, with Dan Shirley and Sara Runesten Petersen winning the mixed doubles title over the world's 15th ranked combination.

The third seeds won the final 15-4, 15-13 over top-seeded Japanese Tadashi Ohtsuka and Shizuka Yamamoto.

"I'm happy with how we played and just getting some games under our belt," Shirley said.

"In the semis we didn't play that well - we had a match point against us. But in the final we kept them out of the match. It's a good win for us."

The most entertaining match of the finals was the men's doubles, where Singapore's Hendry Saputra and Denny Setiawan beat top seeds Keita Masuda and Tadashi Ohtsuka, of Japan, 15-7, 12-15, 15-2.

- NZPA