Lazy to do the numbers but I feel with this loss it’s mathematically impossible for him to qualify for Paris now. Low key hoped from a come-from-behind out-of-nowhere qualification sort of thing but I guess not meant to be.
It's over for sure now. It was a pleasure to have known and supported such a legend. No one has his poise! All good things come to an end.
I think it's out, but it's done. The problem is not just 1 single rally but the whole match, It's not Momota that we want to see. Forget Olympic, I really don't want to see Momota lose at the round 1 again, It will haunt him for the rest of his life and people will tear our heart apart by repeating it a million times
Sad to say, but Momota is now just another one of the "normal" or average Japanese players, actually...he's not even up there with the likes of the handful of his fellow compatriots who can make main draws into the BWF events. His time has come and gone. He was promising when Kenichi Tago was still playing. He was VERY promising after he came back from his gambling ban, and he achieved incredible things pre pandemic (2019). He gave Axelsen 7 straight finals losses during the time he was seemingly invincible. Then we all know what happened. From 2020-2023: The car/van crash, his eye, pandemic, lack of tournament participation, decreased match fitness, catching covid, not making past the group stage in the Olympics, playing and crashing out in most tournaments rounds 1 and 2 (with a few exceptions). This is the 2023 All Japan MS champion? In their current forms, Kodai would have beaten Momota in the SF if that match occurred. And now in 2024, Momota is not making main draws or having to play qualifying and not even making it past that. Momota can be a career badminton player. A sports athlete journeyman if you will. He can have a good several more years of active playing, but I think we should not expect any more from him. Others have risen up and far surpassed him. Our disappointment is tied to our vision of Momota's past. Sadly, this is his present time. It is the reality and our expectations should be commensurate with his current skill level.
I think he was rattled by the in-call by the opponent when he (Momota) was leading 20-19 up in the 1st game. Wasn't there hawkeye available? Win or lose, I'll still support him.
I am very curious about his condition. We all know his form dropped after the accident. But I feel it is a mystery how he never actually recovered to a decent level. There are so many questions: Is it psychological? Does he have a good psychologist to deal with the issue? Is it physical? Recurring injury? How are his practice sessions? Is he putting 100% into practice? Is it his age and fitness level dropping? Is it other players getting better? Is it all these factors combined? Is he getting all the help he can get? There are always speculations about all this. But in the end we may never know. Even Momota himself seemed confused why he isn't producing results.
Not only you, I agree with you and too am befuddled with his thinking, more so his mentality in combat. While what you mentioned can't be seen from on-court footage and images courtside, I raise quite a fair bit of stuff that's evident to me: - He seemed to lose his on-court swag and confidence, often showing signs of worry and thought, to me. - He lost a good chunk of body mass, getting more and more lean. Recent 2024 tournies courtside training/warmup images at Malaysia show clearly he's now skin and bones, with muscle of course. - Most importantly, on Momota's comeback from the accident, he became, from a attacker, to a ralli-er, mellow hard worker without bite, and a Lin Dan one at that. Clear drop clear drop clear drop clear clear. Snoozefest. I am not even afraid to say I walked out on one of LD's game from the VIP seat because of his dilly dally dragging, went to the toilet and got myself food. It is that boring to me, the worker style. I am there for the show, the game, not the guy. I support the guy only if his/her/their game is on it. Like, nobody is telling Momota this tactic isn't working? Axelsen was the first to pounce on his baseline drop shots by standing one step nearer to the net, and then he got pounced on by absolutely everyone in 21/22, and then came his refusal to shake up his plan... and here we are today.... is he having trouble moving back to get the shot to make it a hard shot smash instead of a soft touch drop? Hmm. I legit wanna know, can he change up, and shake it up his current style at least?
Something we could see with Okuhara as well, when they missed a shot, they often stand dumbfounded, like how the hell did I miss that. That's something we don't see before which to me, show how fragile their mental state is. Before, they would just missed, get passed that and concentrate for the next point. We don't see that anymore. As for Momota, I don't know how much his back injury hindered his play. During the All Japan, from the QF, he did say that he had to revert to a rally style because of his back injury
I dont think tsuyenama and nishimoto are doing that well either, does momota has a fighting chance to qualify?
He doesn't have a chance, unless Nishimoto sustains an injury. And even then, given Momota's ranking, there is not enough time left for him to salvage much. Momota is being kept on the national team as a mascot. Apparently, his presence alone helps sustain the morale of other players, especially in team events. That is his new role.
Hopefully seeing his teammates succeed may reignite that fire within him, providing he stays injury free.
the mascot part made me feel bad reading it. It feels quite insulting to be kept on the team not because of your performance but because of your team spirit. It's even worse because he can't even play in top tier events despite being a Team A member. Makes no sense at all.
