Good news, Li Xuerui has announced on social media that she will return to active competition next year http://sports.qq.com/a/20171107/033894.htm Looks like she is determined to make a comeback, as a LXR fan I look forward to seeing her bounce back soon but it'll be a long, tortuous road ahead. At age 26 now, she is neither young nor too old, there is indeed no time to waste. For a once seasoned campaigner and Olympic champion,I believe it all boils down to whether she possesses the never-say-die attitude, the courage and willpower to overcome all obstacles. However, as LXR's world ranking points have been wiped out due to her long absence, she has to start from scratch by taking part in the smaller tournaments first. I'm pretty sure she is well aware of the huge amount of hard work and sacrifices she has to make before it starts to bear results. On the one hand, we can be hopeful and even indulge in some wishful thinking but, on the other hand,we must temper it with realism, particularly in the initial year at least. I believe the news is true this time as she herself made the announcement except that the author of the linked article did not show proof of her social media post. All the best to Li Xuerui. Jiayou!
When you have Chen Yufei and He Bingjiao, LX will certainly be a very good 3rd WS for team China in Uber Cup (as long as she can already reached her actual level) in terms of experience and also technical skill. Very interesting Uber Cup next year will it be, especially to imagine the clash with team Japan
Good news indeed. Thanks, Justin. P.S. That photo of her.. that seems uber flexible. She reached her feets easily, without her arms even in full stretch. O_O
Finally! Momota's case was different.. It is understandable that he had to start everything again. But, I feel BWF should facilitate her comeback. Not that she should start playing superseries' directly, but her way towards them should be made easier. Anyway, great to finally hear something positive from her. I have a feeling first year expect her to struggle a lot (like Saina did). Next couple of years, she will be at her best (although not as fast as she used to, but more mature and playing with more brain than body - and with her experience, that could be a lethal combination). Hoping for the best.
Think should not be a problem for her to come back....look at Sayaka Sato, came back and even won a SS! Hope she can give the youngsters a good fight..... Actually, just nice for her injury to heal nicely....12-15 mths off and rehab. I am sure she started training by now and probably played in a few small local tournament to get back her tournament feel. And looking at the standard ACL injuries - the comeback period is 9-12 mths, which is consistent with the documented studies.. looking forward to her return!!
under no circumstances should that be allowed. fairness in competition is the primary tenet of sport. it would be especially egregious for the governing body to facilitate it. in the big picture who is 'li xuerui'...? the only leeway afforded her is if she happens to fulfill the requirements as a wildcard in her home tournaments. luckily there are many tournaments in her homeland.
That's really good news. She has one major advantage in helping here get back to her best form. She knows what good form feel like, she knows the standard she needs to reach to be the best.
Another article confirming Li Xuerui is making a comeback next year http://sports.qq.com/a/20171108/006633.htm
qualifying rounds are not nec'y. you can save a spot in the main draw if there is no qualifying rounds, subject to the wildcard rule. the latest rule i am aware of is wildcards are now only afforded to a player from the home/host association, subject to a participation rule: not more than 2 other home players in the draw not ranked in the top 75. in the case of wc, og and other bwf 'owned' tournament, since there is no host bwf can grant wildcards subject to their own rules for a given tournament (basically at will). there is an important distinction between bwf owned (wc, thomas/uber, sudirman, og) & hosted (ssp, ss, gpg, etc.). hosted: host/home association pays a sanction fee to bwf, abides by bwf regulations, considers bwf recommendations, negotiates its own deals w/ sponsors (ie. yonex/victor/li ning/etc.), finds it's own venue & broadcast provider, does all the work, takes all the profit/loss risk. for ss/p level a little bit of the title sponsor money (met life) trickles down to help subsidize the costs, but it ain't much relative to the entire cost of hosting. gpg level also receives an insignificant subsidy from bwf. bwf owned (except og): they run the show, own everything, pay for everything (sort of). the local host/home association helps out. og: ioc owns everything (duh!), pays for everything (if you can call it that), bwf runs the show, local host/home association helps out. in the case of commonwealth, pan-am & continental championships bwf has no jurisdiction... because no sanction fee is paid. however, they have guidelines & recommendations they hope you will consider. they also grant ranking points so it looks like they give a rats ass.
With the intensity of the current WS game, don't think it is possible for LXR to return to the top. Maybe in WD or XD, not WS.
