A month after Indonesia’s painful Thomas Cup exit in Horsens, Alwi Farhan delivered the biggest win of his young career – and perhaps the clearest sign yet Indonesian badminton’s next leading man has arrived.

The 21-year-old stunned world No.1 Shi Yu Qi 21-16 19-21 21-14 at KFF Singapore Open on Thursday, advancing to the quarterfinals on his tournament debut and in his first meeting with the Chinese top seed.

For Farhan, the result felt significant not just because of the ranking on the other side of the net, but because of what had happened in recent weeks. Indonesia, record winners of the Thomas Cup, failed to progress beyond the group stage after a crushing 4-1 defeat to France, with second singles Farhan suffering a straight-games loss to Alex Lanier in a tie that left the youngster shaken.

Asked post-match what Thursday’s victory meant to him, Farhan paused for several seconds before saying: “That loss was really painful for me and the team. For a few days after that, I felt very disappointed and honestly quite scared. But today, I proved something to myself. It feels almost magical. Still, I want to stay grounded because tomorrow will be even more important.”

There were tense moments, naturally. Farhan let the second game slip narrowly and saw a 7-1 lead in the decider shrink as Shi threatened another trademark comeback. But instead of panicking, the world No.13 stayed remarkably composed.

“I knew a player with his experience would still believe he could win even when he was behind,” Farhan said. “So it was important to stay calm and manage the situation better than him.

“If I want to win too badly, I start making blunders. So when the second game slipped away, I reminded myself the match wasn’t over yet.”

That clarity proved decisive.

During the final-game interval, Farhan focused less on protecting his lead and more on maintaining his emotional balance, fully aware that Shi’s greatest weapon has often been his ability to turn matches around through sheer belief and persistence.

The difficult drift inside the Singapore Indoor Stadium added another layer to the contest. Farhan described the conditions as “tricky”, though he embraced it as part of the challenge.

With senior stars Jonatan Christie and Anthony Sinisuka Ginting approaching their 30s, Farhan is viewed as Indonesia’s next big hope.

“There are a lot of expectations,” he said. “But I’m still young, so I must manage it well.”

For one day at least, he handled everything perfectly.

→ Results (Day 3)

→ Order of play (Day 4)

WHAT OTHERS SAID

“In the second game of my last match, I felt a strain in my back. When I woke up this morning, the pain had intensified. I couldn’t bend down or twist properly.” – Defending men’s singles champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn on the injury that forced his retirement

“It’s been a while since we were on tour, so we just want to regain our momentum. Next week is a new week for us, we want to rest well and focus on that.” – Thinaah Muralitharan after she and Pearly Tan saw their comeback campaign end in the second round to Thailand’s Aimsaard sisters