Because he can’t maintain consistency after a probable brain injury. You can have good times but these are occasional rather than the norm. There are still many things we don’t understand about the brain.
This is too stretched that I thought for a second it was a joke… Mind you, what separates elite athlete from pedestrians is their consistency at excellence. Maybe Momota got what American sports call the “yips”.
Momota needs a new coach. Up until now, his style of play is not working at all. I thought its psychological due to accident. He himself needs change, else we wont see him winning. He hardly smash. Try counting his smashes.
He needs to play with rage a bit and not give up on any shuttles. And if he cannot get a shuttle he needs to be frustrated about it. Not like 'oh wow what an incredible shot I could never get that.' and then proceed to look at his coach. And I can guarantee that the coach would sympathize with this. Damn. Too soft. Way too soft.
I feel that the singles game strategy has changed.... The playing style of Victor axelson, Lee jz, laksha sen will win many upcoming tournament. Steep,fast and lethal placement. An all rounder player like KM will struggle against them.
My opinion on Momota is this whole covid situation really change things. I have no doubt that his accident may affect him. But then also the fact that he did not play for a certain period of time also probably affected him. I mean if I can recall, he only came back around the olympics time but many others already had a few tournaments in their belt. It's like Okuhara. I think match practice does affect someone performance. Also it's hard to beat axelson who has already develop a "winning" habit. I mean if say someone has been winning all the time, he can be very intimidating. Also, when you are no longer the "best" player in the world, it can take a toll on someone. He is used to being the best player in the world and unbeatable. Suddenly he is no longer the "best" player in the world. I am sure this can affect anyone mentally. There is less motivation to win when you are not the best anymore when once you were the best.
My personal feelings is I am disappointed with those who are coaching Momota. Yes, Momota had Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei to look up to before. But now LD and LCW are no more in the scenes. Now, we have many younger generation players. I still think it makes sense to consider inviting Tago to be part of the coaching team. I think besides LD and LCW, Tago also inspired Momota to have a vision of how far he can go. The accident and covid lockdowns is a very unfortunate thing to happen because Momota couldn't continue to play and follow closely in step with opponent's progress while making gradual adjustments to his own play style. The obstructions that pulled him completely out of international tournaments was very abrupt! Someone said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expect a different result. I feel there is no excuse because there is enough time for the coaches to do their homework especially when there are tons of videos on the internet showing how other players are playing and in what ways they have progressed. But when I look at Momota's reactions, it is like he didn't expect these kind of cross smashes could come from the back court even though his lifts were good enough. I am sure it is not difficult for him to also practice on his own smashes. So i am for better coaches. If Tago cannot then find someone who can. Unless his present coaches can suddenly wake up and do their homework well.
That was an opinion from a member who is just happen to be a practicing doctor in the medical field. I don't think we have enough information on Momota's condition after the accident, but I would take into account the opinions of a professional from the health area.
We aren't getting past 11 points against Zhao Jun Peng? We aren't even Top 20. We are more like top 40 if we are lucky. Wow. Just wow. JUST FREAKING WOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW.
My observation from the match. 1. Momora plays the same patient game and waiting for opponent's smashes. This is a complete failure. He lost almost all points because of this. His defense is not upto the mark 2. His most valuable shots are retrieved with ease and he became nervous. 3. That ' edge of the seat ' coach is still there to make him lose. 4. He is slow like turtle compared to his chinese opponent. 5 Even backhand return from the back has to be tuned. He lost 2 or 3 points from that. 6. He lost interest in playing badminton?.
unbelievable. It really really looks like a person who is half hearted or lost interest to fight. Like a person who hasn't practiced much before coming to the match. Can't help but to wonder about whether Momota is unhappy or having some unresolved issues with someone in Japan Badminton Association? Coaches? Another thing I notice is why is Momota using a racket that is stringed with super high tension? One slight touch and the shuttle bounces off the racket. Might be good for net play when you control the racket well. But it will not do well for rally in windy conditions because the shuttle is completely at the mercy of the wind once it bounces off the racket. There is just a very small window (less than a fraction of seconds) for the player to exert own power to manipulate and direct the shuttle. Is he experimenting something? Even in loosing it doesn't seems real. Whatever it is I hope it will quickly be resolved.
No. 6 - I mean his badminton is currently screaming that right now. Either lost interest or does not believe he can be on form. I don't understand how he seemed to be improving but then goes into the slumber again. He cannot do his most valuable shots because these shots were accompanied by a perfect footwork and stamina and speed which he doesn't have anymore. Damn
Is the tension higher than that it was previously? His lack of power makes me want to urge him to go back to the VZF2. But for sure it isn't the racket only.
It looks as if he has to put in a lot of control to touch the shuttle at just the right angle. The shuttle will just bounce and flies off at slightly higher speed even when not much power is exerted by the player. With a racket stringed to such high tension, the strings will snap if you smash too much. Might be one of the reason why he is reluctant to smash. If this is an experiment than I can't say anything. It is a super ambitious experiment. But please practice as much as possible and make sure you completely master the new tool and it is working the way you want it to... Otherwise, get back to earth and play like normal.
A lot of the top players that played a lot of matches in Thomas/Uber Cup are struggling in thai open, an seyoung, CTC etc, even ginting and jojo skipped to rest. Maybe i will wait to reserve judgement in the Indonesian open and masters later
Yeah but what did Momota do in the Thomas cup? Nothing lol. Also he is the same guy who holds records in most win in same year. So... two consecutive tourneys should be a breeze. He didn't even have to travel.
i can said none is more upset than him. From worrying whether he can still play after the accident, to one who can lost to any player, his confidence must be at an all time low. Ganbatte Momo.
that's why from a long time i changed my signature from get well soon Momota to what it is now. This is what he needs to do.