I'm totally impressed by Chen Longs mental strength during the AE SS and especially in the final against JOJ. He did an awesome job in the semi- and final. He totally deserved the win!
It was the same old problem for CL. He does not bring his A-game to anyone not in the Top-3 Club. And his B-game is not up to par. He can pull it through but wasting too much energy, especially in early rounds, is not good for continued success. Anyway, he did prove that his is indeed the best in badminton right now. Congratulations!
His rally game and occasional kill is not good as LD . JOJ was best exponent of his B game and would have made LD proud . however rightly CL was better than JOJ .
Oh, CL did have a valid excuse. He had a neck strain from a soft pillow since Day 1 at AE. The commentators also noticed his problem. Luckily, this was not as bad as LXR at Denmark Open where a soft mattress forced her to sleep on floor. She got bitten by some bugs and had to go home early. The team should check out the hotel conditions more carefully.
Its no valid excuse . even we amateurs know that sleeping on soft pillow and mattress gets our back stiff . now we are talking about a team of LYB, xia xuanxa ,CJ and the whole team and they missed this basic point ?? For all the professionalism Chinese display ??
Wow, you've a way of straining the issue. From a simple case of CL's carelessness - whether valid excuse or not, it's a fact he sprained his neck a little which might have affected his R1 match with his younger teammate Xue Song that went the full distance, 12-21,21-18,21-9 - it became the responsibility of LYB et al who should be blamed for negligence as 'they missed this basic point' which , tut-tut, called into question 'Chinese professionalism'. CBA had better marked that down on the annual performance appraisals of LYB and company as an oversight, to put it mildly, or a dereliction of duty, if viewed more seriously. Naturally, they are also expected to ensure such incidents, including the LXR's insect-bite case, are not repeated. A minor issue of incompetency if not adequately addressed and the problem nipped in the bud may over time lead to something more serious and widespread. CBA ought to be appreciative of such a constructive feedback and act accordingly. (Intended as facetious banter).
I really wonder about all of these stories... There must be so much gossip going on. There are no pillows at decent hotels in Denmark which are so soft they would get a professional athlete at peak shape to strain his/hers neck - come on. And even if someone ends up sleeping at the floor (maybe the definition of "firm" mattresses are different), there's no way you get bitten by bugs so that you have to withdraw from the WCs. We don't have any bugs like that in Denmark, simple as that. The most dangerous animal you can encounter at a Danish hotel is probably a bee... ---- I think many of you underestimate the level of Jan O right now. It's the first time he's back to the level he was in before the World Champs, where he got out due to injury. Unfortunately he never really got to show how much he had moved his game back then (except for the SSP win he recorded in Indonesia in the build up for WC). Finally it seems he's back. He has had so many set backs over the years, and since Peter Gade retired and Jan O had to step up and fill the void, he simply hasn't had a 6 months streak without problems. And I can tell you, it's not problems like a soft pillow! It's more like being hospitalized for heart failures, etc. Chen Long demolished the field en route to the final at All England, but so did Jan in the last couple of rounds, after a slow start. He defeated Axelsen convincingly and then completely dismantled Sasaki in the semi. In the final, it wasn't just the lower tiered Jan O who was playing his luck out against a much better opponent, as Justin put's it. Jan was clearly the better player at the beginning of the match, but then - just as clearly - ran out of power and ideas at the end, falling too far behind to Chen Long in the third. His last sprint, started by the HawkEye review, got to a halt when in fact it was Chen Long that got lucky and hit a hard drive at the edge of net. Mind you, at a point where he was clearly mentally shaken. I don't think it was likely at all for Jan to have closed the gap, still being down by 4 matchpoints, but it would have been fun to see him try. I think it was a deserved win for Chen Long at the day, but all that crap you write here about how big the difference is, come on. And it being an "insult" to both Chen Long and Lin Dan, that someone here suggested Lin Dan didn't push his best in the semi to spare Chen Long - because of Jan O being a weak opponent, that is so stupid. Especially given the "history" within this particular area of strategic expertice of LYB. I'm not saying that it happened - but to put down Federikko (or what ever his name is) in the harsh manner done here for suggesting it, probably isn't right. I mean, statistics sort of supports his idea. I congratulate Chen Long on the win, and securing his no. 1 spot in the world rankings for some time to come with it. He deserves it. Only god knows how many games he has been ordered to throw over the years getting here
JOJ is not at all behind but with all the strategy which purportedly used by Chinese , others will have to catch up . I mean even if they do such things others have to be stronger and better . suddenly we are missing LCW the lone fighter taking on the might of Chinese day in day out . for the bug part even medium standard hotel do not have bugs in India . hard to inagine in Denmark though .
Just accept the fact that Chen Long will always be superior to Jan O, stop with the bitterness. I know that it hurts for you guys to see that the Chinese are always winning but jealousy will bring nothing. Just tell your players to work harder if they want to beat the Chinese.
To me Chen Long is an improved version of Du Pengyu, taller, fitter, more consistent but at the end of the day boringly robotic and unimaginative. Yes, working harder is needed to beat him but I see more brilliance and spark in JOJ game. I hope both will improve and mature more to entertain us well.
CL is very tough to beat with the experience adding up to him and the fact that he no longer plays a second fiddle to LD . He must be a coaches delight , he sticks to the plan and digs it out no matter what .
First off, the LXR insect bite incident is not gossip or rumour but plain,undeniable fact. Even if you don't trust the Chinese news media, trust what you see on TV where those bite marks were still faintly visible on her face , hands and legs about one to two months later when she played at the CHN Open. She even joked about not being able to marry herself off because of it. FYI, she withdrawn from the DEN Open where it happened and the French Open that followed, not the WC.You may like to check up all my posts relating to it. As for the pillow being too soft for Chen Long causing a stiff neck, that is a purely subjective, personal and relative kind of thing (it bothered him), probably a one-off incident which he remarked casually, no need to make a mountain out of a molehill. As for underestimating JOJ, I believe very few dare to do that, saying he's overrated doesn't mean he's weak, not at all. In fact, JOJ is a very strong opponent as Chen Long said but, in my opinion,he's definitely not in the same league as Lin Dan, LCW and I'd say including CL; in future, who knows. As a matter of fact, I've often said that JOJ is always particularly motivated and has the knack of playing above himself whenever he's up against The Trio except that he lacks the consistency when he's playing those opponents about his level or lesser. To me, JOJ is a successor to Peter Gade but not quite able to fully fit his shoes yet. That AE final has more than its fair share, unusually high, of instinctive, reflex action returns on JOJ's part and missed sitters on CL's part which made me think Lady Luck was with JOJ,by no means was I not implying he won by luck. To say that CL who was holding 11 matchpoints was 'clearly mentally shaken' by the successful linecall challenge of JOJ who went on to take the next few points before CL put an end to it by a luck of the net cord smash - is really pushing it. Instead, it appeared to me that CL who thought the match was won when the linejudge originally ruled in his favour, simply eased off and wound down such that when the linecall was reversed, it'd naturally take him a while to get back up esp when he was on the verge of victory with the luxury of 11 matchpoints; who wouldn't. Next, on Ferrerriko's allegation and FeatherBlaster's argument, my thoughts as follows: 1) Lin Dan is not at peak condition coming back from knee injury and playing at about 80% level as he said but it's still good enough for him to beat the likes of Wei Nan in R1 dropping G2 with erratic play, Tian HW in R2 who pushed him hard, and K Momota in R3 who put up a good fight; 2) However, Chen Long is a different proposition (so is LCW), particularly when he's in top form judging by how he demolished Hsu Jen Hao and Chou TC who had a remarkable run of tournament victories recently; 3) A number of us was wondering why Lin Dan didn't step up a gear or two during his match with KM but instead continued at the same pace as he did the previous rounds, seemingly content to just do enough to win, to which I commented it proved he is constrained by fitness problem and therefore couldn't shift gear up an down at will as when he is 100% fit; 4) Does it mean the less-than-100% fit Lin Dan has anything to fear JOJ, his prospective final opponent, and therefore 'didn't push his best in the semi to spare Chen Long'? To me it's unthinkable, and to even suggest it is not only insulting to both LD and CL but also hilarious. What? LD or CL afraid of losing to JOJ that they got to resort to doing that. Don't you think it's also being disrespectful to the point of ridicule to JOJ to think that he needed LD's 'help' to beat CL? 5) Remember what happened at the CHN Open last year? Who did the 'unfit' Lin Dan (his knee injury was in worst state than now) beat en route to the final? Yes, Hsu Jen Hao in R1, then, exactly, none other than Jan O Jorgensen in R2 !, followed by Sho Sasaki and Chou TC. Lost for words? Who on earth can frighten LD, ever? 6) Before the start of the AE, LD commented that the AE is a very special tournament unlike any SS and that he'd like to win his sixth AE title. So do you supposed he'd give it to CL, and still complained about the skewed draw lumping all the CHN MS together in the same half as well as griped about the dubious linecalls he disputed and the unavailability of Hawk-Eye. Moreover, the AE is no longer a major to CBA/LYB, not a must-win title. Furthermore, this AE is not counted in the OG cycle. I mean LD wants to win the AE to start the year on a right note and to satisfy Yonex after failing to so last year due to injury; 7) More importantly, Lin Dan has a lot to catch up this year in world ranking and for the OG cycle, his unexpected injury last year cost him precious time and impeded his progress, he simply cannot afford to take anymore chances , the more so when he's still not at his best. Better to prepare early and prepare well,having a good start is half the battle won, for the future is uncertain; 8) Another major consideration for Lin Dan is the threat Chen Long poses to him in his comeback ,esp his bid for the 3rd Olympic gold. In fact, their mutual rivalry has intensified to the extent that the two stopped training together since at least a year ago with LYB's permission, mind you. As such Lin Dan will most certainly continue to do his utmost to shut out Chen Long in their H2H and maintain an overwhelming psychological advantage over his younger formidable rival for as long as possible. Without doubt, the last thing LD wants is to start losing to CL and instil the inner belief in him that he can successfully challenge him for top honours. Therefore, the AE semifinal loss is more than a defeat to LD. I believe LD must have realized by now that CL is no Chen Jin in the past who at most is a sidekick, he is a real threat, perhaps more so than LCW come Rio'16; 9) Like Lin Dan before him,Chen Long is what he is today because he has what it takes to get there which he's proven beyond a shadow of a doubt. In the words of Morten Frost, 'Don't expect your opponent to give it to you, you got to take it !" And take it he did time and time again, most impressive of which is his H2H with LCW, 10-9 in CL's favour including the AG'14 win, not forgetting CL is also the first and only one to have registered four consecutive wins over LCW; 10) What impact does Lin Dan's decision to come back instead of retiring have on the badminton world as far as the professional players are concerned, who suffered the most? LCW's name instantly comes to mind for most people but I'd say Chen Long, no less. I recall the many occasions when CL couldn't hide his annoyance at the reporters who kept asking him what effect LD's comeback has on him - CL actually shot back 'What do you think?' and turned away. What about the rest? Du Pengyu who used to be CHN MS No.2 for quite some time during LD's absence was forced into early retirement partly owing to indifferent results and indirectly citing LD's return as part of the reason because his Olympic dream was dashed as there's now only two OG spots available; not to mention Wang ZM and Tian HW. Just a friendly exchange of opinion, nothing personal.
Justin. Out of curiosity. Do you know what bug caused the injuries. I'd really like to know. Could it be an allergic reaction to something else (food or fabric)? I don't think we have bugs living here capable of this at all... Unless of cause someone from around the world reacts differently to Danes to stuff that we're used to?
I've no idea, it wasn't revealed in the articles I read. She was bitten before the start of the tournament and it worsen as the days gone by. But it affected LXR so much, the itchiness and marks all over her body worsened, that she pleaded with her coach Zhang Ning to let her withdraw before the QF of the DEN Open and the following French Open; she didn't withdraw from the CHN Open because it's a compulsory event and the marks were less obvious though clearly visible as seen on TV; that's why the reporters were still asking her about it.
It's hard to imagine this when he just came out. But now is about the time to salute the new King. The way that Chen Long confidently disposed of Lee Chong Wei in the last World Championships and Lin Dan in the just concluded Malaysia Open is very impressive. When Chen Long brings his A-game, he is clearly the best badminton player today. All hail the new King, Chen Long! 2015 Malaysia Open Final vs Lin Dan [video=youtube;a0sQtCfZadc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0sQtCfZadc[/video] 2014 WC Final vs Lee Chong Wei [video=youtube;cmf6Lg-om_8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmf6Lg-om_8&index=2&list=PLA7ZcagI0frDt86yM_44LAdYxbINkw7Xv[/video]
Yes, CL is too good for LD now. As long as CL is around, it will be hard for LD to win another title unless LYB let him win.
Don't underestimate LD. While LD probably can't wrestle WR#1 away from CL, but if they meet at WC or OG, LD may still win.
From watching MO final, LD seemed to be a step too slow to defending CL's attack, but CL seemed to be able to handle LD's attack without problems. At this stage, I really doubt if LD can make any major changes in his game, but CL still have room to improve. I start feeling LD will becomse the old Peter Gade that were able to go to SF in most tournament, but may have trouble winning it all.
We'll get a better picture once the OG qualifying period starts next month. I believe most players in all disciplines are biding their time before then, notably the Koreans. By the way, Lin Dan has , before the match with Chen Long, more or less conceded the leading CHN MS role to Chen Long saying he himself will do his part (MS2 or whatever role required) to the best he can. He said that Chen Long as WR1 has to shoulder the responsibility as MS1 whether it's for the Thomas or Sudirman Cups. As for him, if he doesn't become WR1 in the short run, he will play his role as MS2 well, that's what's most important. http://sports.sina.com.cn/o/2015-04-04/17297564741.shtml That's just as well considering badminton is not his top priority in life, family comes first, and as expected his commercial activities will continue as usual. He's again stated in no uncertain terms he has set his sights on the Rio Olympics and would strive for better results in 2015 to earn an Olympic spot.
