A landmark day for Indonesia
Thursday 1 October was the day Indonesia made history in Nagoya. Both women's pairs won their quarter-finals at the Nagoya City Higashi Sports Center, guaranteeing Indonesia a place on the podium in padel's Asian Games debut. Only Iran, in the men's event, matched the feat of placing two pairs in the last four.
Women's event
The upset of the tournament so far came from Indonesia's seventh seeds. Fadona Kusumawati and Fitriani Sabatini dismantled Japan's top seeds Chifumi Sato and Kotomi Ozawa 6-0 6-1 in front of the home crowd, conceding a single game across two sets.
Third seeds Novela Putria and Beatrice Gumulya followed up with a commanding 6-1 6-2 win over Hong Kong's Hiu Laam Chan and Yik Yan Law, who had come through a three-set battle the day before. Gumulya told the FIP the team was proud to be part of padel's Asian Games debut and wanted to make Indonesia even prouder in the semi-finals.
The Philippines' Danna Abad and Joshea Malazarte won another three-set contest, beating Iran's Saba Najafidehaghi and Neda Mohammadtaghipour 6-2 3-6 6-2. Japan's second seeds Saki Tsukamoto and Kae Tokumoto completed the line-up with a 6-0 6-0 win over Saudi Arabia's Areej Fareh and Alanoud Yamani.
Men's event
Iran secured a men's podium place by placing both of its pairs in the semi-finals, eliminating both remaining Japanese pairs along the way.
Hami Golestan and Arya Roghani beat Teruaki Ando and Shinnosuke Nakamura, the pair who had knocked out Indonesia's Valentinus and Soemarno, 6-4 7-5. Roghani told the FIP that the pressure of playing for a medal was considerable, but that his pair had managed it. Second seeds Farsad Shahi and Amirmohammad Jamshidi beat Kazuki Tomita and Nasa Hatakeyama 6-1 7-6(5).
Top seeds Mashari and Rashed Naif of Qatar beat the United Arab Emirates' Fares Aljanahi and Abdulla Alabdulla 6-2 6-3. Malaysia's Christian Chin and Aidan Yunus needed three sets again, beating the Philippines' Jason Lapidus and Argil Canizares 6-3 3-6 6-3.
Semi-final line-up
Women: Kusumawati/Sabatini (INA) v Abad/Malazarte (PHI); Putria/Gumulya (INA) v Tsukamoto/Tokumoto (JPN).
Men: Naif/Naif (QAT) v Golestan/Roghani (IRI); Chin/Aidan Yunus (MAS) v Shahi/Jamshidi (IRI).
Day 4 results
Women's quarter-finals: Kusumawati/Sabatini (INA) bt Sato/Ozawa (JPN) 6-0 6-1; Putria/Gumulya (INA) bt Chan/Law (HKG) 6-1 6-2; Abad/Malazarte (PHI) bt Najafidehaghi/Mohammadtaghipour (IRI) 6-2 3-6 6-2; Tsukamoto/Tokumoto (JPN) bt Fareh/Yamani (KSA) 6-0 6-0.
Men's quarter-finals: Naif/Naif (QAT) bt Aljanahi/Alabdulla (UAE) 6-2 6-3; Golestan/Roghani (IRI) bt Ando/Nakamura (JPN) 6-4 7-5; Chin/Aidan Yunus (MAS) bt Lapidus/Canizares (PHI) 6-3 3-6 6-3; Shahi/Jamshidi (IRI) bt Tomita/Hatakeyama (JPN) 6-1 7-6(5).
Up next
The four semi-finals are played on Court 1 on Friday 2 October, starting at 1pm local time.
