it depends what you think he needs more of: confidence or stamina. if he needs both then he needs to play as much as possible. you can't change or make excuses out of anything in regards to where any athlete is at any point in their career. injuries happen, car accidents happen, pandemics happen. when they meet on the court the player who played the best will win that match. nor can you control anything that will happen between now and the next time they meet. the winner today deserved to win. no excuses for the losers. they were outplayed.
There was that one point in the second game Chen Yu Fei had a backhand put away at the net, AY still went forward and tried to save it even though it was going straight down to the floor around the service line. Yamaguchi nearly got the shot as well!
She really didn't give Chen Yu Fei any leeway. This win will have done wonders for Yamaguchi, who recently has pretty much been in the shadow of Okuhara. Yamaguchi lacks any kind of personal aura, but having watched her matches live on several occasions, I find her retrieval skills, timing of attacks, and commitment to every single point really impressive. In Okuhara v. Yamaguchi matches, I inadvertently always find myself rooting for the latter, simply because she has a much more captivating and entertaining playstyle.
Both players have a very energetic style of play. I worry about their physical ability to last the next few years.
Very true. On that point, no detailed explanation has been given as to why Okuhara opted not to participate in the Sudirman Cup, Danish Open and French Open, but a physical issue seems to be at play. Let's see how she fares at the Uber Cup.
The biggest obstacle of both (Yama-Oku) was Sindhu. There is only 1 way to win Sindhu (1.79) is physical race. And as we know Sindhu always play well at big tournaments. Sindhu don't "farm" in small tournaments, which can make her opponents know her well and avoid injury. Huge difference in height can be a reason. ........................................................................ Anyway, Yamaguchi was amazing! in French 2018, Tai Tzu Ying dominated for a long time and she was like Lin Dan that time, nobody believed that Yamaguchi would win the final match, but she did. And now, I see someone said that Chen Yufei was like Lin Dan (I, my self, were also think that Chen Yufei is a 2018 Momota, or a new queen who took the crown from Tai), but Yamaguchi, again, proved that everybody was wrong. Amazing!
And I specifically worry about Yamaguchi coz she always takes those kinds of shots which could possibly injure her badly. A risk taker.
I don't remember French Open 18 performance of Akane. But I remember she was a beast in Indonesia Open 2019, she was proactive there. Most of the times she reacts, but in Indo Open she was taking initiative and bossing people.
Japan should take risk by sending Tsuneyama and Nishimoto play in Thomas Cup. DO NOT only depend on Momota, there are Denmark Open and French Open right after Thomas Cup. Let Momota has energy to play individual event. Don't force him to do all the thing and just look at the big picture. I want to see Momota winning Denmark Open or French Open.
Funny you "like" that completely inane post by samkool that is a perfect demonstration of people not being able to distinguish between excuse and explanation and then write this.
Okuhara's name has been removed from the list of players attending the Uber Cup. This means that she will not be seen in action until after the French Open.
They made the right call going Fukushima/Matsutomo and Matsumoto/Matsuyama. Hoping it turns out well!
