VA had retired, you need to redo your calculation. What is on LCW and LD's mind. Smart move for RI, No need to play more Chinese. One thing is certain, we won't see LD and LCW in a final match until Olympic. .
I watched the match Sun Yu - Intanon Ratchanok, it doesn't look to me that IR contrived to lose to SY in R1, particularly the way IR fought back with fierce attacks to close the gap to 18-19 after trailing by as much as 8-16 at one stage in G2 tells me she meant business. OTOH, I'm still quite taken aback by Sun Yu's very proactive ferocious attacking game and tenacious defence, she literally outgunned Intanon. Actually, I'm waiting to see if this is a one-off phenomenon on Sun Yu's part or she has indeed raised her game another level. Still too early to say, consistency is what I'm looking for.
If you're right, then let's wait and see who will be the lucky recipient of Lin Dan's generosity in the INA PSS. We'll talk about the AUS SS next week.
No need to redo the calculation, my initial purpose is giving overall picture that until the end of Olympic seeding period it almost impossible to split between CL and LCW in either 1st position or 2nd position AND the next seeding group are LD and VA in either 3rd position or 4th position. So, the only possible thing is to switch only between CL and LCW or the second possible thing is to switch only between LD and VA. More clearly LD or VA cannot reach 2nd position. Maybe JOJ able to overlap VA. If LCW move to INA SSP QF, there will be a open door for him to be no.1 in WR and move forward into first place in Olympic seeding progress as well.
Yes, but it should be very easy for LXR, WYH and WSX to achieve No. 3, 4 and 5 (not necessarily in that particular order) by 21 July, right?
We love badminton because it is fun. Don't be so serious, we are seriously enough in our daily life already.
LXR lost, it is clear that China want to keep the 3 and 4 position Goin to Rio. it is much more easily to achieve than man.
Whilst I do understand the (possible) motives of LD, not wanting to meet certain players before Rio, I still think it could backfire at him giving those other players a psychological boost by letting them beat him.
In my own estimation, LD is at a level that is never seen in badminton. The other comparable I can think of is Tiger wood and Michael Jordan in their prime. The only person that has the skill to upset him is LCW. The only question is if LCW has the will.
So LCW will overtake Chen Long right as he managed to reach the Quarter Final of Indonesia Open right? I kind a hope LCW to be 2nd seeded instead of 1st
Conspiracy theory of today: Why is Chen Long at rank No.1 for so long and refuses to slide to No. 3 or No 4? is it all about WSX?
LCW has the highest motivation, the most hunger and I beleive he has the will, but the question is ,as Rob3rt pointed out, does he have the nerves and , I may add, the belief when it comes to the crunch. To me, LCW always plays his best and wants to win everything, the problem is he keeps winning most of the battles (eg Superseries) and end up losing all the wars (major titles, the most coveted WC, OG, AG excluding the team majors because it's not a one man's effort), first to Lin Dan time and again, later to Chen Long twice. You can put it down to ill luck, fate (born in Lin Dan's era), mental weakness against Lin Dan and , to a certain extent, Chen Long (at the two WC), carrying excessive burden of the pressure of expectations (being the sole hope of the nation), or even employing less than ideal gameplan and overall strategy relating to physical and mental preparations as to the right time to peak - I guess it's a bit of all these. To be honest, for a player of LCW's caliber, he deserves at least one major title. But that's life, professional sport is cruel, reality can be harsh, often is. However, though this year, at the Rio Olympics, seems to be LCW's last and final chance at winning a big one, and he knows full well time is running out at age 33, I feel he still have a number of things going for him. What are they ? One, despite his growing age, he is still playing his best badminton, as good as ever, more or less, as attested by his tournament victories and match wins over his archrivals, Lin Dan and Lee CW, at least on paper (conspiracy theories aside). Even more impressive and convincing are his many triumphs against everyone else, such as Viktor Axelsen, JOJ, Chou TC, Tain Houwei, Son Wan Ho, just to name a few. In contrast ,Lin Dan is playing the worst badminton in his career, particularly in 2015 till today, his German and All England titles this year notwithstanding. Nor is Chen Long much better as he has yet to win any title so far this year, even flopping at the Thomas Cup. Two, in terms of motivation and drive, desire and hunger to win, will and determination to succeed at the highest level, LCW has never wane one bit over the years despite his repeated failures at the major championships. In fact, in this regard, I rate LCW higher than Lin Dan who apparently the past one to two years especially has been struggling to motivate himself at every tournament he plays so far,with few exceptions, despite his avowed aim of winning a three-peat at Rio. The contrast couldn't be more stark - on the one hand, we have LCW who has yet to win a single big title; on the other hand, we've Lin Dan, the most decorated, the most celebrated iconic figure who has won everything there is in badminton twice over at least, and he's been there and done that so many times. In other words, for Lin Dan, the motivation to win his third Olympic gold cannot be greater than winning his second which in turn was unlikely to be greater than winning his first, for example. However, for LCW, gunning to win his very first and only Olympic gold, his motivation and hunger must be sky-high as never before. Today, at the INA PSS, LCW has just clinched the championship to propel him to the world ranked number one position dethroning the reigning WR1 Chen Long who incidentally withdrew from the tournament on grounds of back injury. Three, again conspiracy theory aside, Lin Dan at age 32 is past his prime as evident in the number of defeats he suffered the last one and a half years, several times to players he used to beat. His tournament results and overall performance have been largely indifferent with only two bright spots in the German Open and the All England, a far cry from his heydays. Not only that, his style of play is no longer the same as the Lin Dan we know since his comeback in 2013 after a one-year hiatus from the London Olympics 2012, intentionally transforming into a more rallying, stroke kind of controlled game, not as offensive or fast and forceful as before by far. Since the last quarter of 2014 when he sustained a knee injury after winning the Incheon Asian Games individual crown, he has been on a losing streak playing a much more conservative game than ever before, on the whole becoming much more vulnerable, beatable. On the contrary, LCW from the end of 2015 until now after a brief period of suspension for doping, has been resurgent again and continues to play a fast and furious attacking game as in his younger days and scoring one tournament victory after another, even beating Lin Dan twice and Chen long thrice , reversing his initial losses to them earlier. Clearly, age has done little to diminish his prowess and spirit. True, some of us Lin Dan fans still believe the great master, Super Dan as he is widely known, will explode and be at his best again come Rio. But that remains to be seen, a mystery why he hasn't done so yet with the Rio Olympics only two months away, giving rise to much speculation. Whatever, the answer will only come to light in August at Rio. As for Chen Long, though he is still generally regarded as in the same league as Lin Dan and LCW, dubbed the Big Trio, however, in terms of experience and skills, I'd rate him somewhat below the other two maestros. If anything, the only advantage Chen Long possesses over the other two is his younger age at 27, six years is a lot in badminton terms, and no doubt his slightly superior physicality, athleticism and agility. In my humble opinion, Chen Long's best chance of upsetting either Lin Dan or LCW or both is to drag the match to three hard-fought, grueling games so that his forte, particularly in fitness or stamina, height and reach, tenacity in defence, can come to the fore. So much for my hypothesis. We shall await the final outcome at Rio de Janeiro.
