Winning a ‘job’ for Natsir and Ahmad

NEW DELHI: After the rush of the medal ceremony, Liliyana Natsir and Tontowi Ahmad finally got a chance to relax. As Ahmad sipped an energy drink, Natsir stood next to him and smiled. They had achieved their aim.

It was to do justice to their top seeding. The world No 2 pair had kept their record in the city intact. They had triumphed in 2011. Last year, they didn't face much trouble and in this edition, the Indone-sians swept away all competition, making it a hattrick of titles.

Natsir and Ahmad took 33 minutes to dismantle South Koreans Sung Hyun Ko and Ha Na Kim 21-16, 21-13 at Siri Fort. So, what is the success mojo? "We enjoy the challenge. It's not about the venue. Every tournament we play, we try to emerge victorious because it's our job," the 27-year-old Natsir told HT. Did they find the proceedings difficult on Sunday? " It wasn't easy but we were confident," she added.

Natsir is often called the queen of mixed doubles back home. She first enjoyed a successful partnership with Nova Widianto. The duo had two World Championshi- ps, 14 majors, the 2008 Olympic silver and the world No 1 ranking to their name. However, at their peak in 2010, the duo called it quits.

The short haired and diminutive Natsir then began a new partnership with the 25year- old Ahmad. The new Natsir-Ahmad pairing had a great start with four titles in 2011.

Before coming to India, they successfully defended their All England title, becoming the only pair to do so.