Indonesia Didn't come on for live scoring as usual. Prob because I knew there wasn't much to root for. But primarily coz my computer is down. Watching both my fav teams (Kor and Ina) get bundled out in the same day was depressing. I'd forgotten what it was like to be so heartbroken in a long time... but following Thomas Cup always brings it back. Kudos to Denmark because like whoever it was tt said on this forum, they had to come a long way to reach the stage they did. Kudos to China, too, esp to Mr. Tang. Their MD is no longer a weak spot as it was in the past. They're really an excellent team now... no matter how much anyone hates Li Yongbo. My heart goes all out to Candra Wijiaya though. No Thomas Cup, no Olympics. Not even a chance to play in the latter. To quote someone, "I'm not heartbroken because they didn't get into the finals. I'm heartbroken because they're (probably) heartbroken." Excuse me while I wallow in depression... and why the hell isn't there a crying icon when I need one most?
Oh btw, I just got reminded that there are a lot of up and coming players born in 85.... I'm really getting old. *BAWLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!*
Typed this reply in another thread, then I realised it's most appropriate here. It's utterly devastating watching your two favourite teams lose on the same day. It's even more heartbreaking to see your two favourite players fail when they're expected to deliver. Like what Cheung said, KDM must have wanted to win that so badly to be making simple errors that are so unlike him. It was so near yet so far for him. So close for both sets. It must have been worse for Candra. As if being left out of the Athens squad wasn't bad enough. He swore to score for INA but ended up losing both his matches while the singles delivered instead. It was such a turnaround in the second game and everybody saw hope again, only to lose sight of it shortly. What a sad way to end his career; such a quiet and lonely way to leave the badminton scene. No Thomas Cup, no Olympics, no WC, not even an ABC title to his name before he goes. Would there be a twist of fortune? I continue to hope the best for him. I came into badminton when MD was dominated by the Indonesians. It is exceptionally shattering to see INA men's doubles being reduced to this state. Seeing the two teams on the podium with forced smiles were the worst moments of the day. KDM and Candra's expressions say it all. They take it so hard on themselves for failing their team. It's just such a saddening day. Can't even get to sleep feeling so depressed. This must be one of the most depressing days in my life. Like someone said, “chasing sports must be the most heartbreaking thing on earth, an investment that yields no return but u willingly, happily do.” Congrats to Denmark and all the Danish fans. They really deserved to win. I was completely awed by Kenneth J's commitment to his shots and his never-say-die attitude. Hopefully Gade would find his feel quick enough against Lin Dan, and the two doubles pair would produce the same form they did tonight because neither lightning-and-thunder-Cai/Fu nor Sang/Zheng would allow simple errors and easy points by their opponents. GO DENMARK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! TAKE THE CUP HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have a feeling the crowd (if any) would be on the Danes' side. Peter Gade lost his first ever TC match. INA lost to DEN for the very first time. So many histories created in one day. So many hearts shattered in one night.
if i were not to know you two, i would swear the above was posted by the same person... but how sad. Candra was on top of the world 4 yrs ago, Olympic Gold medalist beating Lee/Yoo in a heated 3 games battle. a year or two after that, things only went south from there. but sometimes i wonder if he were to stuck with TonyG, would he have done better? but what else can Candra ask for? he already have Olympics and numerous TC titles on his belt. aside from having to leave with a big bang, he is leaving with a disappointment. but none of us can ask for a perfect career. he has achieve much more than anybody. KimDM, i believe he tried, and i think he tried very hard. the rest of the Korean team has given up fighting for the TC but Kim and Lee kept on trying. throughout the whole match, i don't think they have even thought about "give up" for a second. they fought to the end but it was not to be. however, if anything, it was the rest of the Korean team that failed them. the absense of fighting spirit from the singles players has let down the whole team. Kim tried his best. i think the resf of the team should look into the Danes for some inspiration. but if there are any regrets in Kim's career, there are only 2. first is TC, the other is Olympics. Kim's TC dream is over unfortunately, but he is right on track for capturing a XD gold in Athens, MD will be much harder, but fate has it that his partner is injured. sometimes this is just the way it is, fate and perfection doesn't always get along...
just to add. after watching the Cai/Fu vs. Kim/Lee match today, Kim is holding a very firm spot as one of the very best doubles players, without any doubt about it. he has everything, speed, skills, amazing smashes, but most important of all, the smartest of shots and complete awareness of the whole rally. fast and furious that Cai/Fu are, they continuously found that the birdie is heading to the only empty spot they have in their formation. it was my utmost honor to have stood at the same court and hitting the same shuttle with you, Kim DongMoon.
Thanx kwun, reading your posts provided some consolation somewhat. And one of your statements, which sparked off a very hilarious comment, made me laugh for the first time in the past god-knows-how-many-hours which definitely seemed like half a lifetime. Haha. So true, but still so depressing. Please let there be no slip-up in the Olympics for Kim/Ra. It's past 5am here. Sigh... a couple more hours to daybreak.
I totally agree with u, nauknip... I nearly burst out into tears when kim DM lost...He tried so hard but still... his disappointed look is the most heartbreaking one... btw, i noticed that he has a tattoo on his right arm...is it??? Candra...im sad beyond words... Definitely one of the worst night in my life... I will be mourning for the both of them....
It's not a tattoo. It's one of those marks left behind after physiotherapy. They have it all over their body. Those round circular ones are caused by what they call ba2 guan4 in Chinese medicine, I think. Woke up with a gigantic headache, but still, I'd like to say a big thank you to someone for bitching with me the whole of last night. Made me feel so much better. Fortune isn't always on your side. To be fair, we're feeling what the millions of Chinese fans felt two years ago, and they're feeling the exhilaration we felt two years ago too. Just so happened that the two best players in the world have to lose on the say day and unfortunately enough we like both of them. It's perhaps not so much the loss of INA and KOR that's causing the heartbreak, but the defeat of KDM and Candra in their respective matches. Undeniably, the Cup will find its new home and stay there for quite some years, so now it's our turn to hope that we wouldn't have to wait 10 years for someone else to take it. Biased here, I know, and I am not about to deny it, neither do I have to explain it.
I agree with mostly what have been said here. Kim DM is the player of this half decade and will be sadly missed, and so is Candra. The saddest part is that Kim DM didn't get to slog it out against Cai/Fu with his usual partner in crime Ha, and I still hold to the belief that they shouldn't have split Candra/Sigit off regardless of the complaints of commitment etc as enlightened by Sunzhi in one of the othe threads. Imagine how it would have been if the the clockwork Candra is still playing with the flamboyant Sigit, it would have been really different, with due respect to Trikush. Whatever it is, fate doesn't always go the way we want it, else it won't be called fate in the first place.
I have been depressed. Until now, I am very sad. I was very painful yesterday. But, I will recover my strength and support Kim Dong Moon and Ra Kyung Min, my favorite players. I will pray they will be Olympic gold medalists.
"ming4 li3 wu2 shi2 mo4 qiang2 qiu2" ... my father always tells me that when I worry about my life, my future, anything. OUCH! ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch ... my head is throbbing with close to 24h of non-sleep.
That's right. Chandra played reasonably well (could be better) but Trikus just lost it once he got the bad line call at 4-5 in third set. Then again, I have expected that their might not be able to beat Denmark. The absence of Sigit and Halim already foretold that. And the performance of Flandy/Eng Hian and Alven/Luluk are just not at TC level (both have never played in TC Finals competitions before). These two pairs do better in individual tourneys. Anyway, from my perspective, the best teams that have a chance of beating China is Denmark (3 experienced singles, 2 experienced doubles), followed by M'sia (2 experienced singles, 1 and a half experienced doubles), then Korea (2 experienced but erratic singles, 2 experienced doubles), and Indons (1 experienced singles, 1 experienced doubles) last. So Denmark deserve to be in final. Notice that experience counts in TC, so China (3 experience singles, no experienced doubles) might have problems against Denmark. However, if M'sia had beaten Indons, they would have beaten the Danes. Gade's performance against Sony was even worse than Wong Choon Han's with stomach upset. He was never in the game. I feel sorry for Sony, he did the unexpected and the team just couldn't ride on it. Sometimes, it's just who you meet that determines how far you progress in tournaments. The current Korean pairs (including Kim DM) lost because they keep playing at high speed with the Chinese. That's the problem. Against fast and aggressive pairs, you need to vary the game speed and use drives more (preferably shoulder level), which is why Danish and M'sian pairs have more success against the Chinese compared to Korean and Indon pairs. Notice how the Danish pairs like to drive the shuttle criss-cross (like mixed doubles play) against Indon opponents to catch them off-guard and slow down the pace.
Whoa! Now here are a few names I remember from posting on the forum a few years ago!! LOL How are the studies going in the US Adel? How are you naukip? What ever happened to May? Anywho, I hope all is going well for you guys. I was actually surprised INA lost to Denmark. But then again I remembered I voted for Denmark & China in the TC men's final.
Regards....! Whoa! Thanks for remembering Kelvin.... And congratulations on your accurate prediction. My studies are going ok thankfully... seems like ages when I first came onto this forum. But oh well, three years later and with 6 more months to graduation, I'm glad that 1) My life is still dictated by badminton events to a certain extent 2) I've mastered enough Korean to ask Kim DM for a photograph 3) I've met some of the most amazing people through this forum 4) Kwun is married 5) Cheung has a daughter 6) BC is growing stronger with the years! Cheers...!
sigh... poor kdm... he's like my most favorite player ever....sob sob... and i feel sad for candra too.... by the way, i know kdm might be retiring after Athens, but will Candra retire too? cause i suggest he wait a little so he could make a dramatic exit like winning the wc 2005 and end his career or something... but.... it might just turn from bad to worse, like lee/yoo or hendrawan...
Kim has got XD gold in 1996 Oplymics, and he is just 18 yrs old at the moment. So, I think the XD gold in Athens would be a good ending for Kim/Ra pair rather than for Kim himself. Btw, 2003 Sudirman Cup is also a great memory for him.
He was born in 1975 so he was actually 21 when he won the gold. And hi Kelvin. BC's home to badminton fans you and I alike, so it's one place hard to abandon, especially in times like this. Hope everything's been going well for you too!
