Rachel Allessya and Febi Setianingrum Eye Redemption Against Japanese Rivals

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – Indonesia’s women’s doubles pair Rachel Allessya Rose and Febi Setianingrum are determined to turn past defeat into motivation as they prepare for a rematch against Japan’s Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto in the round of 16 at the BWF World Championships 2026 in New Delhi, Thursday, August 20, 2026.

Their target is clear. “Our next goal is to win against Yuki/Mayu,” Rachel said after she and Febi secured a straight-game victory over fellow Indonesians Isyana Syahira Meida and Rinjani Kwinnara Nastine, 21–11, 21–10, on Wednesday, August 19, 2026.

The upcoming clash offers Rachel/Febi a chance to avenge their quarterfinal loss to Fukushima/Matsumoto at the Asian Championships in Ningbo, China, earlier this year, where they fell 11–21, 16–21 in their first encounter with the Japanese duo.

Confidence played a key role in their latest win. “We had the confidence because we had beaten Isyana/Rinjani before. We could play comfortably with an attacking pattern, and they made quite a few errors,” Rachel said, as quoted by Antara.

Febi highlighted their aggressive approach as decisive. “We played more aggressively, attacked more, and when defending we tried to quickly turn it into counterattacks,” she said.

She further noted that the strategy was similar to what they used at the Indonesia Open 2026, but the windy conditions in New Delhi allowed them to control the match more effectively. “The difference this time was the wind, and we managed to use it to our advantage,” she added.

For Febi, the match also marked her debut at the World Championships. “This is my first time playing at the World Championships. Of course I’m happy and I want to give my best,” she concluded.

With renewed confidence and lessons learned from past encounters, Rachel and Febi now look to prove themselves against one of the world’s top pairs, turning their pursuit of revenge into a test of resilience and growth in Indonesia’s women’s doubles badminton campaign. ***