in spite of all disputes and other problems, I think NBA must continue to prioritize talents. and His chance might be at 2024 Olympic, not 2020.
Vietnam Open, Japan's remaining representative in QF : 2 WS : Oie and Takahashi Mine and Kawakami , the most higher rank team B player lost too easily i think. dont know what happened to them. 1 MS : Koga 1 WD : Honda/Shimizhu 0 MD and surprise, they have 1 XD : Urai/Miyaura anyone know who they are? never heard their name
Oie did well to take down the No. 1 seed, Kirsty Gilmour, and it looks as though Koga is still fired up from his recent win at the All Japan Members Championship. I would have liked to have seen Watanabe Koki or Naraoka progress further, but Watanabe probably spent all his emotional and physical strength earlier in the day, when he beat Heo Kwang Hee. Urai (Marusugi)/Miyaura (Yonex) have been a National B pair since 2018. In my opinion, Yamashita (Nippon Sport Sc. U)/Shinoya (Unisys), newcomers to the B Team and runners-up at the Akita Masters, have more potential, though.
XD : I think Shida/Kobayashi looks good too. just they are not in the same team. it's will be difficult for them.
Oh no, 2 of my favorite team B players in WS have to fight against each other tomorrow. Although I like Oie because she has good wrist power and can move the shuttle very rapidly, I am actually hoping that Asuka Takahashi with her long reaches will win because she is a bit more consistent (unless stamina issues creeps in) . For MS, I am happy that Minoru Koga managed to reach semi finals. I hope he will keep his nerves under control and aim for gold. He can do it if he refused to be intimidated by the opponent's powers and remember that he too has powers to be feared by the opponent. If nothing else, he has a fighting spirit that will not let the opponent have an easy time. WD and XD, thanks for the pleasant surprise.
I bet Oie will win. I think, compared to Takahashi whose movements were a bit awkward, Oie was more agile
Yes, Asuka Takahashi wins! awkward doesn't matter as long as get to the shuttle in time ... Taller players like P. Sindhu's movements also a bit awkward. But I also like Oie and I think she has good future if she trains hard. Watching them play is like watching Fukushima vs Matsumoto ... He, he
In case you don't aware of Bird Japan's IG, here is the link. I don't know if it is really managed by the real Bird Japan or just an account of Bird Japan's fans though. https://www.instagram.com/birdjapan.suki/ Just having fun looking at the photos and videos there. There are some videos about the players in their childhood life. I am surprised that the kid AY looked more girly in her childhood (with pigtails, no less)
This particular page is entitled Bird Japan suki, i.e., I like Bird Japan; ... it is a fan's page. Just in case you are not familiar with this development, as of July 2019, the NBA established an official fan club site, Bird Members → https://fan.badminton.or.jp/ <Japanese only>.
Whilst their playing styles are certainly different, it might be difficult to argue that a height discrepancy has any influence. Oie: 164.5 cm Takahashi: 165 cm Incidentally, Mizui is 163 cm, which makes them all very close, physique-wise.
The puzzle revolving around Naraoka Kodai's non-participation in the World Junior Championships (WJC) this year has been partially clarified by a Badpal article (https://badpal.net/2019/09/15/kodai...d-junior-after-collecting-bronze-then-silver/ <Japanese>) published today. According to the article: 1. This year, the National Sports Festival (Sep 29 - Oct 2), in which each of Japan's prefectures compete in a variety of sports disciplines, happens to be held during the same period as the WJC team tournament. Here, the Aomori Prefecture Badminton Association, wanting to be represented by Naraoka at the Festival, entered into discussion with the Nippon Badminton Association (NBA). The result of the discussion was to give priority to the Sports Festival. 2. Although Naraoka was no longer able to take part in the team tournament, he explored ways in which he could still participate in the WJC individual tournament (held Oct 7 - 13). However, the NBA refused to approve this, and Naraoka's name was not included on the WJC players' list, as published on September 3. 3. Although it can be surmised that preference is given to players able to participate both in the team and individual events, the NBA's Press Office declined to answer Badpal's queries with regard to this case. 4. When Badpal questioned a BWF contact, however, he was informed that, provided that entries are submitted before the deadline, "individual tournament only" registrations are not a problem. Indeed the BWF contact person commented that it was incomprehensible not to allow individual tournament participation, just because a player had been unable, for scheduling reasons, to take part in in the team tournament. He added that it was regrettable that Naraoka, positioned 3rd in the junior rankings, was unable to compete in his last year. 5. Naraoka, for his part, had badly wanted to try and take the title, and feels totally "drained" by the fact that he has lost his last chance to go for gold, and that there was nothing that he could do about the turn of events. --------------------------
The difference was that that certain Taiwanese player still represented the country in the other tournament. When Naraoka chose Prefecture over Nation.
It is not at all clear to what extent Naraoka was involved in the decision making process. He is still a minor, and his personal wishes may not have been fully taken into account.
Thanks for bring this to my attention. I didn't check their heights clearly ... From appearance, i thought Asuka looked tall. Maybe i am so used to NO and AY. Unfortunately, Asuka Takahashi didn't win the final. Hope these team B players have the determination to overcome their problems with the help of good coaches. They do have something good but the abilities to persevere patiently with a strong mind when meeting unfamiliar but equally good opponents is another matter.
I thought that Takahashi, being ranked 113, did quite well to get as far as the final. As she had to go through the qualifying rounds, she played two extra matches, and this probably took its toll on the nineteen-year-old. I, too, hope that her corporate team, Yonex, puts some effort into nurturing her skills. Oie and Mizui, who are affiliated with NTT-East, probably benefit from more pro-active support. ... But Takahashi still managed to beat both of them at the Vietnam Open. We will be able to watch Takahashi and Mizui again at the Indonesian Masters (BWF 100) early next month. Oie, unfortunately, has not been entered.
