President Joko “Jokowi“ Widodo (left) receives the Indonesian Amputee Soccer (INAF) national team for the 2022 Amputee Soccer World Cup at the State Palace on Sept. 21, 2022. The event was held in Istanbul, Turkey, from Sept. 20 to Oct. 9, 2022. (Courtesy of the Presidential Secretariat/-)
F
or Indonesian national amputee soccer forward Agung Rizky Satria, taking on Argentina in the opening match of the 2022 Amputee World Cup in Turkey was an eye-opener.
As a minnow in Group C alongside Argentina, the United States and England, “the squad found Argentina nerve-wracking, as its technical advances enabled the team to dominate the game,” Agung recalled of the Indonesian squad’s 0-3 drubbing by the South American soccer powerhouse.
The fiasco preceded a 0-5 beating by the US and 0-3 drubbing by England.
“We only studied the Argentines’ game from social media, so facing them firsthand was an entirely different ballgame,” said Agung.