Okay, then, explain to me how Viktor almost always seems to flag around the 35-45 minute mark of matches. He can't play much more than a full set at a good pace (Show me one three game match against a real top player (LD, LCW, CL, SWH, where he had better stamina and wasn't "choking/gassing out" before his opponent ). I think part of his mental frailties in third games are stamina problems. He isn't outwardly tired (He doesn't seem like his gasping), but his pace certainly drops, as does his shot quality, all signs of flagging stamina, Conversely, Chen Long often dominates third games handily, because he has the best stamina ever.
Chen Long clearly dropped the second game on purpose, we can see him doing that in his earlier match with SWH as well, CL wore Viktor down, and then pounced when he saw a clearly weakened Axelsen. Axelsen had to play perfect and at a super high pace just to score in the second game, and he was gassed for the third. Chen Long pounced, and the rest is history
Yeah, sure, he purposely hit into the net and out the baseline... on purpose, so that he can get more practice time...
Well yeah, that is exactly what he was doing, he seems to do that quite a bit, he did it in his olympic match against SWH as well. he gathers information about the conditions and shots of the opponent on the second game side (The side where he will end up in the last part of the third game). he tests his length and the opponent's shots, which will lead to mistakes and the opponent scoring easier points (This also serves to wear down the opponents), and in the last part of the third game, he makes none of the mistakes and he knows exactly where the shots are headed. It is sheer genius
Look at how close the shots had to be for Axelsen to score, they were on the line, we can see that getting to him in the third game, as he sent so many shots out, Chen Long forced them out, that is his trademark, he forces opponents to play perfect to beat him
Easy. Japan Open '17 final against LCW. And thanks to your latest post you have indeed outed yourself as either a troll or a delusional fanboy. Not bad actually. Makes it easy to put your future contributions in the right perspective and not taking them fully serious anymore.
LCW has clearly lost the stamina that took him to the top. Ever since the Worlds, LCW has been clearly way out of shape. Even Ng ka Long seems to have more stamina than him. He can regain it if he focuses on it, but for now, he doesn't have any stamina anymore. We have seen him clearly gassing out in third games. Stating obvious fact is not being a troll (Watch the match, Axelsen's winning shots were on the line, or literally a few cm away).
I think, to some people, their world is black or white, where they don't allow the possibility of shades of gray or nuances of different colours...
Man, im not talking about 50 shades of grey here, all I am saying is that CL, LCW and LD are clearly physically superior to Axelsen (The current LCW does not count, he is clearly way out of shape). If LD had won that first game in Glasgow, he would have comfortably won the world title, he just got unlucky by losing that first set. Axelsen isn't even physically better than these older players, although he may be very slightly technically superior. This China Open showed that
Just ask any of VA's opponents if they aren't troubled by his physicality, his speed, power, court coverage, his height and reach, his steep forceful smashes and retrieving ability - that's how he overpowers most of his opponents, including any top player who's not in fine form, except when his temperament acts up sometimes.
Federer on grass, Nadal on clay. Enough capacity for 2 kings conquer at the same time. However, when 2 hungry dragons meet, nothing they can do but fight for survival. The battle between CL with VA boosted the passion with full engines. CL’s style was obviously modified to fit VA by more offensive and risk-taking hits than his usual plays. I strongly felt he was much hungry to win than in Rio Olympic 2016. It was rare but tempted everyone to watch! They pushed their limits to the next levels. Strong attacks and net trick shots were played stressfully. Long rallies or drop shots were relatively less. Hitting on sidelines and retrieving on the floors from different corners happened again and again. Both expressed the highest standard of badminton skills and the remaining battle was their insistence. The same feeling I had have only when I watched the matches between LD & LCW.
Well said. And there's a clear bonus for the respectful and positive attitude that those two showed on court. Just watch CL's reaction at the end of this fabulous netshot exchange: Priceless... EDIT: The following rally is stunning as well. Wanne see how netshots are done? Watch this!
When hasn't Chen Long been all smiles though? Whenever his opponents do something phenomenal he's grinning away.
Of course they are troubled by all that. Chen Long is simply better at most of those things. On that level, the differences are so small, we all have to keep that in mind
Winning Dubai Helped Me Loosen Up: Axelsen It was a year ago that everything changed for Viktor Axelsen. Having fallen short on the ultimate step of a World Superseries title in six finals, there were questions around the lanky Dane’s temperament under big-match pressure. Those questions were finally banished on the final day of the Dubai World Superseries Finals, when Axelsen overcame a 21-6 whipping by China’s Tian Houwei in the second game and stayed resilient to fashion a first Superseries title victory. Having got that under his belt late last year, Axelsen could do no wrong this season. The India Open was conquered – after two previous failures; and then it was on to the biggest stage of his career, the TOTAL BWF World Championships. The manner in which he overwhelmed two greats – Chen Long and Lin Dan – on successive days to claim the World title proved that the brittleness of the past had given way to a more complete package. In Dubai to defend his title, Axelsen talks about his first Superseries title victory and the sensational season that followed: The Dubai World Superseries Finals last year was your first Superseries title. Since then you’ve had some great results. How much of that would you credit to winning here in 2016? You know, I think there’s a big difference between being in the final and winning it. After winning you relax a bit, you finally have the title. It definitely helped me loosen up a bit. Since then it has been good. You’d been in six finals but had never won – were you getting frustrated? What made the difference last year? I think that I was going into this tournament a bit more relaxed. I was here only because (compatriot) Hans-Kristian Vittinghus – unfortunately for him – became sick. And I had only one week of proper training. I went in a lot more relaxed and that was a good thing. Maybe it was a little bit (frustrating), but it’s better to be in the final than in the quarter-final. On some occasions I lost out to better players. So I didn’t really think too much about it, to be honest. It was definitely a good thing for me to get the title here. It’s more fun to win. A title is, you know, it’s hard to describe, but it’s more important. And then you won the India Open in your third final there… Winning Dubai made me more relaxed and that was a huge boost. It was great motivation to keep working hard. Thinking back on the World Championships… it was nearly a perfect week for you, wasn’t it? Of course, thinking back, it was great week for me. I played some of the best badminton I’ve ever played. Every badminton player dreams of winning it. It was a dream coming true for me. Lin Dan had been in six World Championships finals previously and won five. Considering he had the experience and the mental strength in finals, how did you get your edge against him in his seventh final? I think winning against him in the Olympic bronze medal match was a big boost for me, it gave me confidence that I could beat him in a big match. I was fired up, and I believed I could do it. I slept quite okay on the eve of the match. I had a good sleep part if you can say so. And Chen Long in the semi-finals? Even you look surprised at how quickly you finished the match. I was surprised to beat him by such a big margin. I wouldn’t dare to hope; you keep thinking – now he comes, now he will start to play better – but I just continued to play better and better. What changed for you after World Championships? A lot of people started to give me attention, even more than in the past. It’s definitely different now, but I’m enjoying it, and trying to meet people. I’m still the same Viktor as I was two years ago, just with the World Championships gold medal now. I don’t look at myself as a different person. I’m just happy that people find my game and my results to be good. Is the feeling different when you step on court as World champion? Definitely I’m more relaxed and more confident. A World Championships medal means a lot, it defines your career that you have a World title. I’m much more relaxed and enjoying it, and no matter what happens, I will always have my World Championships medal, my Thomas Cup title, which is so important for me, and something you chase for your whole career. It’s already happened to me, so I’m happy about that. Would you say the big test starts now, as your opponents will be more driven against the World champion? I think… every time you win something, there will be a comment that now it begins… that’s how it is. If you win two titles, it will be whether you can continue winning, and things like that. I don’t think about that, I take care of my own shop so to say. Your first big title after the World Championships was the Japan Open against Lee Chong Wei. Again, I was really happy to be able to play at a high level so shortly after the World Championships. After the Olympics, I had a hard time finding my level. So I was really pleased about that for sure. Your thoughts on returning to Dubai… Of course it’s been a long year, but I feel confident, I feel good. Training has been okay, no injuries, so that’s really positive. And life outside the court? I’m continuing my Chinese lessons, enjoying the language. I love to read. Right now, I’m reading the Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius’s book ‘Meditations’. Source: http://bwfworldsuperseries.com/news-single/2017/12/12/winning-dubai-helped-me-loosen-up-axelsen/
Good win for Viktor, but he was clearly helped by the service judge, 5 points by the service judge giving LCW faults
