Lin Dan has to play the JPN Open because it's sponsored by Yonex with whom he has a 10-yr contract. Simple as that, the result is secondary. Btw, if Lin Dan is not that fatigued by the QFs, he will give KM a run for his money. It's not only his age and fitness that worry me, I think we can't ignore his self-motivation to do reasonably well and also to prove a point that he's still a force to be reckoned with, esp with a view to Tokyo 2020.
Just by warming up Well his goal right now is to compete in Tokyo 2020. He will try to qualify for sure.
How you still cling to the notion LD isn't a shadow of his former self is quite astonishing if Momota plays anything like he did at the WC, LD can't do anything. He has no weapons to hurt him with and his defence cant produce points, and Momota rarely opens himself up to counter-attacks which is the only thing LD still does very well. There's also no way LD can just play long rallies and tire Momota, who is younger, much fitter, and probably almost equally efficient. And patient. Seriously, unless Momota has a physical drop and LD peaks at the same time, it's not even a close contest.
Well, Lin Dan is still pretty well known, so why not?.. I'm sure a lot of LD fans and casual viewers would want to see that matchup. Even during the Asian games medal ceremony, LD still received plenty of cheers from the audience despite not playing. After the recent world championships, LD was interviewed by reporters and actually said he wants to increase his BWF rankings. The Japan Open is a super 750 tournament which gives a lot of points. I think he'll try his best.
Well, theoretically, it's hard to argue against you but, Lin Dan being Lin Dan , who knows, we can't be too sure; otherwise, he'd have retired by now and not continue to make a spectacle of himself before the Olympic cycle begins despite having declared his final aim to go to Tokyo 2020. To be honest, KM is definitely the player to beat at the moment but I don't see him as a class above the rest. Besides LCW who has bested him, Ginting is another one who has shown ability to take him on twice already, losing but not without fighting chances, not to mention, to a lesser extent, Darren Liew who put up a credible fight at the WC semifinals encounter. At the coming JPN Open, since they are slated to meet at the QFs, not the penultimate or final rounds where LD is more likely to suffer accumulated fatigue, I won't rule out the possibility of LD giving KM a decent fight at least. Whatever our opinions may be, I'd rather let the two protagonists' racquets do the taking when the time comes.
http://sports.sina.com.cn/others/badmin/2018-08-30/doc-ihiixzkm2574014.shtml In the Q & A session post-Asian Games, Kevin Sukamuljo was asked several questions, one of which was, " Which athlete do you admire most ? " He replied:" I'm fond of Lin Dan, he possessed all the badminton championship titles; moreover, that he can persist in his career for so long."
What a draw for the China Open WTS1000, Lin Dan's R1 opponent is Anthony Ginting and in R2 he's slated to meet Viktor Axelsen !
Lin Dan has signed up for the upcoming Korea Open tournament and he's in the same half as Momota again: https://bwf.tournamentsoftware.com/sport/draw.aspx?id=64F74681-A9A8-487F-8C60-E1F23803BB7E&draw=2 And his younger teammates - Lu Guangzu, Zhao Junpeng, Zhou Zeqi and Li Xuerui - are playing in the qualification rounds.
Asian Games : Men's Singles : Lin Dan 2 - 1 - 0 Zhao Jianhua 2 - 0 - 0 Taufik Hidayat 2 - 0 - 0 Men's Team : Lin Dan 3 - 1 - 1 Lee Hyun-il 2 - 2 - 0