Badminton in Japan
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Cunning Linguist
Regular Member
Well that is A + B team, but no info on who plays in which. This is just speculation, but TanaYone might end their career soon. Yonemoto is 30 already and I have to say I was pleasently surprised to see her make a comeback at all after her heavy injury. PJB probably knows something we don't.
I hope you're right. It was almost painful watching Momota from the end of the first game when he lost the lead until the end of the third game when he finally took the initiative and was paid off. His game was so negative even though you know he can do much better than that. I never thought I could get nervous whenever Tsuneyama jumped up for a smash! That only happened in matches against Ginting
. Despite all that, he managed to keep it together and won. Mentality of a champion indeed!
trizzforce
Regular Member
I was happy to just see her in action. You're probably right about her impending retirement as Yonemoto is quite old by Badminton standards.
As a Yamaguchi fan, I'm still reeling over the lost 
.
Here are a few points from her post final interview to give insights into the poker face on court
:
-In the second half of the second and third game, she was too anxious to get the points and ended up forcing it too much. She was afraid to make mistakes and found it difficult to attack (it also didn't help that Okuhara's shot quality was top notch).
-She thinks that she doesn't have enough stamina and speed to implement what she wants to do yet and will need to work on those areas as well as the mental aspect.
-Even though she won all the matches going into the final in two games, she wasn't completely satisfied with the way she played, but admitted that she has grown as a player as she was able to win convincingly over opponents that she should be able to beat.
As someone has mentioned earlier, Takahashi said that she is coming back from injury and didn't have enough time on court before the AJC started. Ohori, on the other hand, is more concerning. Going into the AJC, she didn't have any goal and was in a situation where she has lost sights of things. It must be mentally tough for her to have her active career be sandwiched in between those of the two greatest Japanese WS players in recent history. She's a good player that can go further if it were not for her mentality. Hopefully, she won't give up and be able to find a place for herself on the team.
.Here are a few points from her post final interview to give insights into the poker face on court
:-In the second half of the second and third game, she was too anxious to get the points and ended up forcing it too much. She was afraid to make mistakes and found it difficult to attack (it also didn't help that Okuhara's shot quality was top notch).
-She thinks that she doesn't have enough stamina and speed to implement what she wants to do yet and will need to work on those areas as well as the mental aspect.
-Even though she won all the matches going into the final in two games, she wasn't completely satisfied with the way she played, but admitted that she has grown as a player as she was able to win convincingly over opponents that she should be able to beat.
As someone has mentioned earlier, Takahashi said that she is coming back from injury and didn't have enough time on court before the AJC started. Ohori, on the other hand, is more concerning. Going into the AJC, she didn't have any goal and was in a situation where she has lost sights of things. It must be mentally tough for her to have her active career be sandwiched in between those of the two greatest Japanese WS players in recent history. She's a good player that can go further if it were not for her mentality. Hopefully, she won't give up and be able to find a place for herself on the team.
kurako
Regular Member
I hope you're right. It was almost painful watching Momota from the end of the first game when he lost the lead until the end of the third game when he finally took the initiative and was paid off. His game was so negative even though you know he can do much better than that. I never thought I could get nervous whenever Tsuneyama jumped up for a smash! That only happened in matches against Ginting
I was in cold sweat throughout the game, but this happens quite a lot with Momota.
Momota is uncanny in knowing which points, in the lengthy flow of a match, are important points to take and, by extension, exactly when to go all out. His calculation usually pays off.
i agree. however, there's a difference between finding a place on the team and winning on the circuit at the highest level and having olympic medal potential. at 24 years of age she's no longer an up and coming prospect.
as for winning a wt 500+ tournament i don't see it. unfortunately ohori lacks the muscle strength and is a tad behind in the speed department relative to the top 15 ranked ws players. she's #19 right now and if you look at the rankings do you see her consistently beating the players above her -to win 5 matches in a row- in order to win a tournament? https://bwfbadminton.com/rankings/2/bwf-world-rankings/7/women-s-singles/2020/12/?rows=25&page_no=1
anyone not named okuhara or yamaguchi becomes the placeholder of #3 ws for the uber cup team.
kurako
Regular Member
Jinnai Kimiko, badminton commentator and Japan's WD representative in the Barcelona Olympics, has the following to say regarding Momota's performance at the AJC:
I feel that Momota performed at 40~50%. His game was compromised by his nerves, and it is a fact that the usual sharpness, weight and power of his shots was lacking. His accident and Covid-19 have kept him away from the stage, and although he has been training stoically, he appeared perplexed by shots that differed from those encountered during practice.
As Japan's freshly confirmed No. 1 MS, Momota should feel at ease entering the Thailand Open. I hope he experiences as many earnest matches as possible, and shines more and more brightly.
I feel that Momota performed at 40~50%. His game was compromised by his nerves, and it is a fact that the usual sharpness, weight and power of his shots was lacking. His accident and Covid-19 have kept him away from the stage, and although he has been training stoically, he appeared perplexed by shots that differed from those encountered during practice.
As Japan's freshly confirmed No. 1 MS, Momota should feel at ease entering the Thailand Open. I hope he experiences as many earnest matches as possible, and shines more and more brightly.
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I definitely agree with you that Ohori is not going to be winning at the highest level, but I think she can find her place as a solid #3 WS until the up and coming juniors like Gunji take over. It would be a shame to see her spiral into destruction due to her lack of confidence. She had beaten Intanon twice now and had put up a few good fights against CYF. I don't think she's top 10 material but, top 15 is doable.
I always enjoyed watching Nozomi Okuhara and Akane Yamaguchi play. Great speed, skills and fighting spirit.
I hope Shimoda, Asuka Takahashi, Gunji can inherit the wonderful skills, speed and fighting spirit.
I am quite impressed with Minoru Koga, Shimono and Koki Watanabe even though they did not win. If Minoru Koga was not tired out after the match with Nishimoto, he might be a threat to Tsuneyama.
Tanaka and Naraoka, I have to wait and see.
Tsuneyama has also improved a lot in his attacking skills if I am correct. He used to be mostly defensive. Also, there is hope in Nishimoto if he can develop stamina. Some may feel that he should not smash too much. But I think his smashes can be his strong point. The only problem is for players who must depend on smashes , they must also be ready to build up stamina. Because once stamina is gone, accuracy will also go along with it. Unforced / forced errors will creep in. If they are willing to build up stamina then by all means , go ahead and play that style that demand you to take every opportunity you can to apply smashes. Also, these type of players must try to win the match in first 2 sets and try to avoid going into the 3rd set. Playing Momota's style might not suit everyone especially if you meet some like Momota who is close to mastering his own style.
But Momota is indeed a very balanced player. Even when he smashes you can sense that he uses less energy to execute them than most players. Yet, it can be powerful and effective. Sometimes his smashes kills or score points and sometimes his smashes just put his opponent under pressure. Those who choose to play Momota's style must have very great internal control. He is patient, calm, alert, good instinct ... but not without speed, skills, accuracy and power to back him up so he can cope with the different types of challenges he faces.
Although I believe Momota will have great chance of winning but Players like Viktor Axelson, Ginting and Lee Zee Jia will be good challengers ... and by playing with these palyers .. it will help Momota to improve even more.
I hope Shimoda, Asuka Takahashi, Gunji can inherit the wonderful skills, speed and fighting spirit.
I am quite impressed with Minoru Koga, Shimono and Koki Watanabe even though they did not win. If Minoru Koga was not tired out after the match with Nishimoto, he might be a threat to Tsuneyama.
Tanaka and Naraoka, I have to wait and see.
Tsuneyama has also improved a lot in his attacking skills if I am correct. He used to be mostly defensive. Also, there is hope in Nishimoto if he can develop stamina. Some may feel that he should not smash too much. But I think his smashes can be his strong point. The only problem is for players who must depend on smashes , they must also be ready to build up stamina. Because once stamina is gone, accuracy will also go along with it. Unforced / forced errors will creep in. If they are willing to build up stamina then by all means , go ahead and play that style that demand you to take every opportunity you can to apply smashes. Also, these type of players must try to win the match in first 2 sets and try to avoid going into the 3rd set. Playing Momota's style might not suit everyone especially if you meet some like Momota who is close to mastering his own style.
But Momota is indeed a very balanced player. Even when he smashes you can sense that he uses less energy to execute them than most players. Yet, it can be powerful and effective. Sometimes his smashes kills or score points and sometimes his smashes just put his opponent under pressure. Those who choose to play Momota's style must have very great internal control. He is patient, calm, alert, good instinct ... but not without speed, skills, accuracy and power to back him up so he can cope with the different types of challenges he faces.
Although I believe Momota will have great chance of winning but Players like Viktor Axelson, Ginting and Lee Zee Jia will be good challengers ... and by playing with these palyers .. it will help Momota to improve even more.
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UKnowWho
Regular Member
The last part of WS 3rd game. The last poin hit the net?
https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1ba4y1p7NU
https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1ba4y1p7NU
UKnowWho,
Thank you so much for the link. I was searching all over youtube for a replay but no luck.
Interesting, Akane and Okuhara knows each other so well ... they know how capable their opponent is of executing a flurry of un predictable counter attacks, ... no choice but ... patiently pin each other to the back of the court and ...choose carefully when to start initiating attacks. Great match ... each time a little bit different. Last time I saw them.. they were attacking each other like crazy ... like 2 super sonics clashing all over the court. Great fan of both Okuhara and Akane.
Also, a fan of both Fukushima/Hirota and Matsumoto/Nagahara. Each time, these 2 pairs clash I can never tell who will win. Matsumoto/nagahara .. seems to be more willing to take risk .. executing creative shots .. net rush ... go for the lines. Is that better? Well ... if they can master their style of playing ... great. But in their journey to master their style, they will most likely make more unforced errors.
Thank you so much for the link. I was searching all over youtube for a replay but no luck.
Interesting, Akane and Okuhara knows each other so well ... they know how capable their opponent is of executing a flurry of un predictable counter attacks, ... no choice but ... patiently pin each other to the back of the court and ...choose carefully when to start initiating attacks. Great match ... each time a little bit different. Last time I saw them.. they were attacking each other like crazy ... like 2 super sonics clashing all over the court. Great fan of both Okuhara and Akane.
Also, a fan of both Fukushima/Hirota and Matsumoto/Nagahara. Each time, these 2 pairs clash I can never tell who will win. Matsumoto/nagahara .. seems to be more willing to take risk .. executing creative shots .. net rush ... go for the lines. Is that better? Well ... if they can master their style of playing ... great. But in their journey to master their style, they will most likely make more unforced errors.
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Quentin11
Regular Member
Hey guys it's been a long time. Hopefully business will resume as usual in 2021.
I might be late to the party but I hear Kento won the National Championship? Can someone send me the link of the Final on Youtube?
Also please tag me in Momota's thread, I can't find it at all!
@kurako @Cunning Linguist How are you doing?
I might be late to the party but I hear Kento won the National Championship? Can someone send me the link of the Final on Youtube?
Also please tag me in Momota's thread, I can't find it at all!
@kurako @Cunning Linguist How are you doing?
Nine Tailed Fox
Regular Member
I was in cold sweat throughout the game, but this happens quite a lot with Momota.
Momota is uncanny in knowing which points, in the lengthy flow of a match, are important points to take and, by extension, exactly when to go all out. His calculation usually pays off.
Lin Dan used to do it in Ancient times.
Nine Tailed Fox
Regular Member
Players sometime test their lesser gears when they battle a known opponent which they have practised with, studied for, rigorously.
I think Momota has three more gears which he will not show till Olympics.
LD in 08 and CL in 16 Olympics attempted this gear preservation method during the road to Olympics.
I think Momota has three more gears which he will not show till Olympics.
LD in 08 and CL in 16 Olympics attempted this gear preservation method during the road to Olympics.
Quentin11
Regular Member
3 more? That's a lot!
Nine Tailed Fox
Regular Member
Yes. He still has that 'Antonsen 21-3' gear waiting for Ginting Sinshuken Antonio in the Tokyo Olympics final.