Will this continue to be a historic year for Timnas Basket Putri?

BANGKOK (Thailand) - It has been quite a year for women’s basketball in Indonesia. Now at the FIBA Women’s Asia Cup 2023 Division B, they can make it even more memorable.

Can Timnas Basket Putri keep it up and make a historic run in Bangkok?

“ ...from the beginning until now, the improvement has come on in leaps and bounds."

The chase

Indonesia are in the hunt for a spot in Division A, which would be their first since the two-division format was adopted in 1994. They are among the five teams in Bangkok that have never played in the top division.

They made a return to the Women’s Asia Cup in 2021 for the first time since 2013. In Jordan, they were able to make an impressive run to the Semi-Finals where they lost to the host.

Despite not being able to gain promotion or make it to the Final, things were looking up for Indonesia.

A big of that was having Kim Pierre-Louis on their team for the first time in a FIBA competition.

"I started this journey with Indonesia two years ago and from the beginning until now, the improvement has come on in leaps and bounds," Pierre-Louis said in 2021.

Regional rise

Those words rang true through the next two years.

With Pierre-Louis leading the charge in her first South East Asian (SEA) Games in 2022, Indonesia were able to celebrate their third silver medal overall and first since 2015. They lost only one game (to the Philippines) and won the rest by double-digit margins.

And they kept their foot on the gas pedal.

According to lead point guard Agustin Gradita Retong, she and her teammates went directly back in a long-term national team training camp for nearly 10 months after winning that silver. During that span, they’d get the opportunity to continuously test their talents at the international level, playing as “Indonesia Elite” in the South East Asia Women’s Basketball League (SEAWBL).

Eventually, all of it paid off.

Writing history

The SEA Games 2023 campaign started off a bit more differently for Indonesia. In their first two games, they had to grind out a 5-point win against Vietnam and were only able to beat Thailand by one point.

But after collecting those two wins, Timnas Basket Putri found their groove. A few games later, it was a crucial 89-68 win over defending champions and Women’s Asia Cup Division A side Philippines that boosted their confidence enough to go undefeated.

And once the dust settled, history was made as Indonesia claimed their first SEA Games gold medal in women’s basketball.

“With this achievement of gold, (hopefully) women's basketball in Indonesia will receive more attention,” said Ayu Sriartha after that competition as per MainBasket.

Division A next…?

There could even be more attention coming the way if the ball rolls in Timnas Basket Putri’s favor in Bangkok.

The team have continuously been in preparation for the games ahead and there are expected to be some key returning pieces. Those teams that stand in the way might seem a bit familiar whether it is Jordan, Iran, or Kazakhstan.

Then there are also the neighboring foes who Indonesia might have the upper hand in recent matchups but cannot underestimate like Thailand and Malaysia. Additionally, it might not be wise to overlook a debuting team like Mongolia.

However, Indonesia have had some great achievements over recent years. Maybe this will be the year they finally break through into Division A.

FIBA