the reigning Cup holder Indonesia has been having some internal shuffling. Mainaky and Hendrawan, the 1st and 3rd single for the 2002 edition have both retired. Candra/Sigit splitted up but two new pairs formed. Sigit/Trikus, Candra/Halim. Taufik is still having problems with the PBSI. Sony is just starting to prove his abilities. as a result, we hardly see any Indonesian players in the later stages of tournaments anymore, even the MD event in Indonesia Open itself wasn't won by an Indonesia pairing. apparently disarrayed, will Indonesia be able to retain their title in 2004? other strong powers are emerging. Denmark now have the reigning world MD champion plus another few very promising MD pairings, Gade has re-emerged, not as strong as before but time will heal. China is reviving its MD department with young, fast and energetic players. LiYB will vow to reclaim the Thomas Cup which he last held in the last decade/millenium. Korea still have the strongest doubles, and singles players like Lee, Park and Song who will perform wonders when national glory is at stake. Malaysia who came 2nd again is still strong. this will be a very interesting TC indeed.
I guess its INdonesia...they are very strong when it comes to group event...i donoe why.....and plus its gg to be played in Jakarta...where the crowds are fanatics to cheer for their own home teams, its can be quite intimidating for their opponents.... but i personally hope CHina will win it anyway.............hehhehe......
I think Korea has very good chances, but we shouldn't forget Indonesia will be playing in front of their home crowd!!
No doubt at all, it's gonna be Indonesia's, not because they are the best, but hosting it virtually earned them the title!! Quite sick of IBF decision!!!
2004 Thomas Cup is unique in which no countries seem to be standing out over another. all 5 countries listed i think have an almost equal chance of winning the Cup. it is true that Indonesia has the advantage of being the host, and Indonesian supporters are famous for being hostile to visitors. let's see how that pans out. may the strongest win.
Yes, I think this Thomas Cup should be really great considering how tight it is between the five major nations... We're going to have fun for sure!!
Didn't we think the same about the 2002 TC? Once Indonesia get their doubles sorted out, they will be unstoppable. Taufik will play at 3rd singles
I think INA has a good strategi to win TC2004, first they make Taufik as a number three ranking in INA (no player rangking three can beat Taufik), 2nd they try to solve out the MD by breaking the number one INA MD, once they short out you will surprising that INA have two MD that ready to chalange top level MD.. they just need three points to beat other opponents......
Korea could have done the same but messed up last time with strange team tactics. They split up their men's doubles.
this time around, Denmark has gotten stronger, China has gotten stronger. Korea is still at the same level, Malaysia is at simlar level, and then Indonesia is now weaker. so the level of all the nations are even closer than last time. it will be an interesting Cup...
i think malaysia stand a good chance... no doubt china will still have the highest chance... for malaysia... LeeCW is proving himself.... and WongCH is on good form.... also.. he's the best when chinese is not around..... LeeTS is not that bad either... also in the doubles.... it looks like LeeWW/ChoongTF is regaining their form as Malaysian Top Doubles Pair.... Chew/Chan will not be that good next year... because Chan undergone a surgery..... so next year is recovery year..... so Malaysia Best Bet will be 2 wins from singles... LeeCW and WongCH and a win in doubles LeeWW/ChoongTF .....
I think Denmark is an outsider this year. In MS they got Gade, Jonassen and Boesen In MD they got Jonas/lars and Eriksen/Lundgaard biggest thread would perhaps be from China or Malaysia. China of course i big favourite.
If INA wants to have Taufik as 3rd singles, who will come 1st and 2nd? Sony Kuncoro and Simon Santoso? Let's say the hypothetical CHN MS lineup to challenge is Lin, Chen and Xia/Bao or any other similar combination, China should then still be able to capture 1st and 2nd singles and 3rd singles against Taufik is most likely down the drain as he's unstoppable on homeground. Then Cai/Fu would be utilized best as 2nd doubles and there's the 3-2 victory!!! Malaysia holds a good chance with the Wong CH, Lee CW, and Choong/Lee setup. But essentially any loss from one of those 3 could be extremely detrimental. But they do have several choices for 3rd position and may come out lucky as in Lee's victory over Taufik last year. For Denmark to hold victory over any of the other 4 powers, it would essentially have to win both doubles (except possibly against Korea whose singles is slightly weaker than the other 3 but then the KOR doubles are extremely strong). Korea has a decent chance if they can just win one of the singles as Kim/Ha and Lee/Yoo both can secure points if need be. But Kim/Ha have been beaten by Choong/Lee twice now in a short span showing that they are far from invincible. Korean 2nd and 3rd singles are not on par with the others save for Denmark. China's MS is strongest overall and at least 2 of 3 points should be secured. Problem is deciding to place who against who. One wrong choice (like Bao against Hashim last time) and they can lose it. If Cai/Fu can keep improving, then they should be able to obtain 1 of 2 points in doubles with Cai/Fu as 2nd doubles. It's time for the TC to switch hands next year just like the Sudirman Cup did this year!
Nominating Jakarta as the host virtually gives Indonesia the Cup. Forget it, even if the young Chinese pairs of Cai/Fu and Sang/Zheng keeps improving by leaps and bounds and the Indonesian pairs' standard carry on deteriorating. Playing in Jakarta will enable even old mediocre player like Trikus Haryanto to perform miracle. Taufik at no 2 or no 3 will not matter much as he could just blow weak mental players like Chen Hong off without much fuss. I guess the discussions in this thread will only make sense if TC is played in other parts of the world rather than Indonesia. Sorry, but just stating the facts!
The fact goes in recent years that Indonesia seemed to do pretty good in team event as Silvia had indicated, and playing at home some more, what else top expect? Still, there is doubt on whether they could recapture that collective effort that won it many times in the past when the players aren't so consistent? And Malaysia - individual performance may at time cause much nail biting annoyance but when it comes to team events, somehow, suddenly they click into a formidable group of opponents. What gives? And China is looking ultra strong of late with their singles players capable of just taking all 3 points to win while their doubles are on their way up. But then again, just as things were looking good - they just don't seem to click as team as recent performance had indicated (I don't know about the SC), instead losing when they should win. Denmark, Korea? I never considered these two teams, esp Denmark as they have often slipped when it mattered the most. Korea? Things are looking good with Lee HI and the two doubles capable of winning matches. I think Korea will emerge as the Dark Horses. My bet? I think China will make it this time, with Indonesia out of the finals for the first time in a long long time. It'd probably be a China vs M'sia Finals. It's probably the return to the Chinese dominance now since 1982.
Malaysia....have enough good players & the conditioning. Indonesia will be a tough place to play. The heat & humidity is absolutely stifling, let along inside the stadium. The crowd & the atmosphere, you can't even hear yourself think!
I tend to agree with Hugo that China has the best chance of winning the TC. So strong and dominant are they in the singles that it will really be hard for the other countries to beat them in this department. If you add on one other doubles win from their two fast-improving doubles pairs, they have it all practically sealed up. Plus, if our BF voters' opinions are not to be slighted, they voted overwhelmingly in favour of China with 40.5%, with Malaysia cominng in a distant second at 24.3%. But it is still some time from the actual combat and anything can happen in between as well as on the day itself!
No doubt, playing at home definitely has its advantages. However, although Indonesia may secure many wins through Taufik at third singles if that is their strategy, but their number one and two singles, especially number two, must be a weaker player. Against China in the finals, I think the singles will weigh in China's favour. No doubt Chen Hong has lost to Taufik in Batam this year, but China may also put someone else to challenge Taufik. China has more to choose from their singles players who are more established internationally, compared with the recent crop of Indonesian players. Whilst Indonesia's normal doubles pairings have been split and are currently undergoing adjustments with new partners, except for the returned veteran pair of Eng Hian and Flandi Limpele, who may not be fielded, China's young doubles are shaping up quite nicely with opportunities to participate in many international tournaments. So, despite playing against odds in Indonesia's home ground, China seems to have a slight edge and I think if it really comes to a China-Indonesia showdown, China will prevail with a 3-2 win, coming from 2 singles and 1 doubles. I say 'if', because Malaysia and especially South Korea, seem to have other ideas that may well project them into the Finals! But you bet the wiry China mastermind, Li Yong Bo, will also have other ideas when confronted with perennial adversaries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and S Korea.
