Personally I think it was a very bad decision by SYQ. If the score was already at 20, might as well play it and finish the match. This is rally score system, let your opponent serve and finish the game. A Chinese national retired badminton player was coaching a young team and received a visiting team for a competition. After the games finished the visiting team young coach and active player playing in international tournaments asked to have a game with the former national team player. The older coach was not feeling well physically but due to the request by the officials agreed to play one 15-point game. The game reached 13-0 in favor of the old coach. At this point, the old coach was feeling really bad and the younger guy caught up 13-13. The older coach decided not to deuce and to play the remainder 2 points, gather all his energy and won the 2 points and the game. When the game was done, the older coach assistant drove him to the doctor's office. I spoke to the older coach about this later and asked why he agreed to play even though he was not feeling well. He said that though this was just a friendly game with no real consequences, he still need to finish the game out of respect of his opponent. The mentality of a player, should be to do his/her best, play the best to win and not fear to lose. My point of view, SYQ should have just completed the match, like the older coach, even though he might not be well physically.
On a lighter note, one of GC's favourite phrase is : It's not how you start the match, but how you finish the match. Guess this can be used for a different conclusion.
What is the general reaction in China to his actions and his interview? China coaches made a good move to mitigate controversy by dropping him for the final even though it weakened the whole team.
Auto-translation gives some idea of what this young man has been through -- https://www.badmintoncn.com/news.php?id=24178&from=bbs. He apparently wanted to retire much earlier on, but coach wanted him to see the match through just in case something 'fortuitous' should happen.
I think so. If he was playing two matches on the same tie, e.g. singles and doubles, then he wouldn’t be.
Read all my posts carefully, am I finding excuses for him? I'm only taking issue with your unduly harsh criticisms of SYQ while going easy on IR and AY, and double standard too. Your commentator's example is irrelevant. Disown your kid? Of course, you can't be serious. Condemning other people's kids is par for the course, no love, no price to pay.
Well said. Kids nowadays have much to learn from the older generations about life. If Tang Xianhu were around in the national team coaching, it'd break his heart. Lin Dan was lucky to have a mentor like him.
If true, and he can't go against the coach's instruction, then go down fighting for what he lost today, he will gain in future battles, in terms of fighting spirit, willpower, grit determination, mental toughness.
Yes you are finding excuses for him by bringing other players into discussion. Truth is, no one has done anything close to what SYQ did, and that’s the main reason for public outcry. Intanon retired after a few points. Just look around how many early retirements we have lately: Chen/Jia just retired in Denmark after a few points. SYQ himself retired early with Lu Guangzu last year in China Open which is probably the most comparable to Intanon’s case as it also had something at stake (in that case it’s Olympic points). No one gave any of these players a real hard time, on the contrary, people pointed out flaws in the system (forcing athletes to play many games, how to calculate Olympic points and etc). Is there such a similar reason with SYQ? And I don’t know what Yamaguchi did. Did she also retire at some occasion? Or are you referring to losing badly to An Se Young? In any case, I fail to see how is it comparable to SYQ’s case. And I’m not harsh. I just call a dumb act as is. You are welcome to call other players out and see if people agree or disagree.
You keep belabouring the same points over and over again and I've already addressed them as best I could, to no avail, apparently. But your fixation with SYQ retiring one point shy of matchpoint is all you seemed to care about as if all the other unsportsmanlike behaviour, including gamesmanship, by anyone else pale in comparison. Remember , the Thai brawl, players wrecking their racquets against the floor after losing, kicking the racquet almost into the crowd, a certain player getting into a shouting match with a spectator who taunted him , the Spanish Bull's antics, players' arrogant gestures after winning a point, etc, and so on and so forth, the list goes on. All that don't get your hackles up to the same extent, NO, WHY? Because :"Truth is, no one has done anything close to what SYQ did, and that’s the main reason for public outcry." THAT IS YOUR PROBLEM. In a Freudian slip, you even threatened to disown your own kid if they do the same (Thank goodness, SYQ can heave a sigh of relief he's not your son). That reveals what's ailing you about SYQ's act of folly, in your opinion. SYQ is not allowed to have any human failing, one slip and that's the end of him, no extenuating circumstances; therefore, SYQ alone is to be held to the highest standard of sportsmanship. Period. And you even stopped me from bringing other people in whose similar unsportmanslike behaviour bears comparison. Again, WHY? Because the rest can be forgiven and forgotten but not for SYQ - ONLY HE IS GUILTY OF THE WORST KIND. Poor SYQ, by Hbmao's moral high standard , not just definition of sportsmanship, SYQ is to be condemned, an unpardonable sin as nobody has committed a worse act. Oh, Momota, how can you be unconcerned about it, you're the victim , you know? In Japanese society, SYQ , if he's honourable, can only redeem himself by hara-kiri, no less (whether it's illegal or not is another matter), in the eyes of HBmao, standing on the moral high ground. I think, it's time you get off your high horse. SYQ is just a professional athlete who has erred in spostsmanship, Momota has got his victory awarded and Team Japan earned their rightful 1 - 0 score.
I think it's unfair to club AY with SYQ and IR. If you are referring to her semi final loss, then I don't think it's any different to CYF loss to Yamaguchi in finals, where she too didn't give her 100%, as she knew her team would be able to win anyway (Though on hindsight it was more difficult for Japan on paper). Personally I think SYQ is a fine player and always has been humble on court. Hope he would redeem himself and explain the situation from his perspective, as the post match interview didn't do him any favors.
I'm afraid, if you had watch the Akane Y vs An Seyoung match, it's like amateur against professional, mush worse than Chen Yufei's loss to Akane Y in the Uber Cup Final. That's why I use the word 'outrageous' to describe it, Akane was practically unrecognisable and full of uncharacteristic mistakes, the worst I've ever seen her play. It turned out to be an expedient move, a gamble that paid off, as Team Japan is undeniably stronger than Team Korea, overall. In hindsight, once Intanon retired to CYF just 7 points into the match, Akane's coach probably was stunned by it and worried that Akane might be physically stretched going all out to beat An Seyoung, hence decided that she took it easy so as to conserve energy for the next day's final against CYF. It's that obvious, just watch how Akane rose to the occasion against Chen Yufei in the opening team match. Fortunately, Team China despite CYF's opening match loss, went on to capture the following three matches, namely, WD1, WS2 and WD2 (this one a surprise to me) for a 3-1 victory to emerge champion. Frankly, if it had come down to the 5th tiebreaker match, WS3 between Han Yue and Aya Ohori, the outcome is anybody's guess.
TBH, personally, I have lost faith in Shi Yuqi, for how long, don't know. Even if he suddenly performs admirably in a certain tournament, it may be on again, then off again the next tournament or so. If I were CBA , I won't select him for any team championships for the time being, until he starts to show more consistency, be more steady and reliable in the individual championships for a reasonable period of time, say , six months to a year, before considering him again to represent the country in team championships.
I don't follow badminton (especially China) as much as I used to. I watch some matches here and there and whenever time allows. With regards to Tang Xianfu, I see him simply as the best coach around. Wherever he goes he develops new players and make established players better irrespective of the disciplines, be it in singles or doubles, individual or team competitions. His knowledge and experience is second to none. Now, I doubt how much impact he would have on today's China badminton. I might be wrong but I do not think the current coaches were under his tutelage. Lin Dan, I think he was intelligent to recognize his shortcomings and did listen and followed Tang's instructions. In Shi Yuqi's case, would he be strong and intelligent enough to acknowledge his weaknesses, work on them and become a better player. Time will tell. And who knows, Tang Xianfu might still be available for consultation and recommendations if one is willing to listen.
SYQ only made his situation worst with what he later wrote on Weibo. He clearly said that anything could happen on court and that Momota could either make more mistakes or get injured too... and for staying till 20, he thinks it's a "mental tactics" to make Momota win "uncomfortably". I think that is childish. I gave it to him that he was playing with blisters and he did wanted to quit at 11-2. But his coach didn't allow him to retire. To end it at 20 point is his decision. So he'll be that player with no sportsmanship to me, not his coach. I don't want to comment about dirty tactics by the coaches or if a player is genuinely playing badly or just giving up. But from a point of individual sportsmanship and attitude, Shi is lacking that in this case, not just by the decision to retire but also what he said and his unapologetic attitude after doing that. I end it here.
Don't worry, it's not an irredeemable mistake. If he learns the right lesson from it and achieves self-mastery, with his remarkable talent, there's no stopping him ascending the summit one day. Let time tell. Just think, SYQ actually has an even H2H record, 4-4, against Momota. And the way he bested Momota at the 2018 World Tour Finals ,and the last two Sudirman Cups, namely , 2019 and 2021, is testament to his ability, considering 2018 and 2019 are Momota's best years so far. I trust CBA knows what to do about him.
If Li Yongbo is still available (Is he?), SYQ would be getting a "Hair-dryer Treatment" of his own. Sent from my M2007J20CG using Tapatalk
