Indonesia win opener

China, tipped along with Denmark to challenge Indonesia for the crown, beat Sweden 5-0 in their opener in Group A8217;.

The Danes were due to play hosts Hong Kong later today.

Badminton is the national sport in Indonesia and attracts huge television viewers. With team management promising protection for their families during rioting in Jakarta and other cities, the players said they were able to concentrate on the competition.

Former world champion Heryanto Arbi started the rout for Indonesia with a 15-10, 15-10 win over Jeroen van Dijk and Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky, the Olympic champions, sent the small, but boisterous home support intoraptures with a straight-games win over Quinten van Dalm and Dennis Lens.Hendrawan, the world No 9, put the overall result beyond doubt with a 15-5 15-3 triumph over Garben Bruijstens.

The laid-back Sun Jun, the reigning All-England champion, put China on the road to victory by beating Sweden8217;s Henrik Bengtsson 15-7, 15-0 in 27 minutes. The only surprise was world No 5 Don Jiong being taken to three games by Daniel Eriksson in the final match.