I don't mean to put ZYM down. I am very much in her corner. She brings something different to court and is delightful to watch. It's just somewhat disappointing that she is not performing to her potential. It's a bit like watching HBJ. But HBJ is an extraordinary talent and there is always hope that she may break out. ZYM's talent is not at HBJ's level. If ZYM can't capitalize on her opportunities, she may not get too many chances.
Zhang Yiman's two-straight-set loss to Supanida Katethong in the opening round of the Ausssie Open looks concerning though admittedly she appeared somewhat lethargic playing her 4th tournament in a row, the first three in Europe consecutively, then after a week's break the AUS Open. Despite her attempt to step it up in G2 after another tentative start quickly falling behind 0-7 when she reasserted herself to stop the rot , then drew level at 9-all and went into the lead thereafter until 15-all , whereupon she once again fell behind and wilted towards the finishing line with lackluster play, the score 21-13, 21-16. Throughout the match her fitness level , stamina and endurance, was suspect as she just couldn't get her usual game going. In this regard, I opine that she really has to work on her physical fitness. Even in the Hylo Final title bout with Han Yue, ZYM 's stamina was clearly inferior to her younger colleague, who showed considerably better physical conditioning in the way she covered the entire court. Based on this one aspect for the time being, I feel that Han Yue will outdo Zhang Yiman going forward.
Zhang Yiman, good job avenging her previous defeat to Supanida Katethong by beating her this time at the Princess Thai Masters, albeit narrowly, 15-21, 21-18, and 22-20. Frankly, I'm quite impressed with Supanida's attacking game, the fashion in which she unleashes her cross-court smashes from both her right-hand and left-hand sides at the backlines was spectacular as well as her follow-up at the net whenever her opponent is able to retrieve her smashes either by putting it away if the return shot is loose/short or force another lift with a tight netshot and carry on controlling the rally with the upper hand until the opponent capitulates. In fact, so well executed was SK's offence that after she had taken G1 emphatically I was sure even before the start of G2 that it's going to be SK's day again. Little did I think ZYM can survive SK's relentless attack that when she began to do so with some equally beautifully counterattacks of her own, I was fascinated by her sheer tenacity and grim determination to give as good as she got to eventually prevail over SK and force the decider. Next G3 was more evenly fought as they traded blows until the mid-game interval with ZYM holding a slim one-point lead. After that, ZYM pulled ahead even widening her surplus to 17-13. But, at that moment, the feisty SK reeled off with the next four points to tie 17-all. Just when I thought the tide would again turn in favour of SK, they both gave tit for tat and took turns to lead but it was ZYM who reached matchpoint first by a mere single point, which however she failed to convert, and it was deuce 20. To ZYM's credit, she held her nerves and wrapped up the match 22-20. Yes, it was an intense battle, thrilling from beginning to end,one that speaks highly of both the victor and the vanquished. Bravo !
Allow me to repost here what I posted on the relevant tournament page:- A bit surprise that Zhang Yiman prevailed against Han Yue as the latter was commanding in the manner she disposed of Hsu Wen Chi yesterday, while ZYM escaped by the skin of her teeth in a close three-set affair with Supanida Katethong the day before. Anyway, I'm glad for ZYM as she really needed that victory more than her fellow 3-year younger junior, Han Yue, as she is already 26 years old now and had to show some credible results if she is not to be relegated to the national second team or, worse, to the provincial team where she came from. So, congratulations to Zhang Yiman, Women's Singles Champion, Princess Thai Masters 2023. May she grow from strength to strength.
Allow me to repost what I wrote of Zhang Yiman's stunning performance today against her nemesis or phobia, if you like , Tai Tzu Ying, at the China Masters 2023 R2 matchup :- Wow, just managed to watch the replay of Tai TY vs Zhang Yiman, totally out of my expectation. What a transformation by ZYM if we compared how she was bamboozled by TTY in their two previous encounters where she was literally toyed with by TTY's deceptive play so much so that I even thought she might developed a phobia playing TTY again today. Not at all, aside from TTY's sudden retirement while trailing at 8-11 in G3 when serving and was caught by ZYM's disguised return of serve whereupon TTY start-stop-and-then-moves forward motion before she called it quits on grounds of injury. Who would have thought TTY on the receiving end of ZYM's trick return shot, a taste of her own medicine, to result in her ending the match abruptly. In fact, from beginning to end, ZYM defied my expectations by being able to handle TTY's game in almost every department to deliver a well-fought close affair, dropping G1 18-21 followed by equalizing with G2 21-19 and even went ahead in the decider till TTY conceded the match at 11-8 down citing injury. Yes, I was blown away by ZYM's performance today and it brings back my belief that she might well become a late bloomer, hopefully following in the footsteps of her illustrious senior compatriot , the legendary Zhang Ning, whose accomplishments, two-time Olympic Women's Singles gold medallist at age 28 and 32 in the 2004 Athens and the 2008 Beijing Games , needs no further elaboration. Excellent job, Zhang Yiman. Keep it up. Way to go ! ---------------------------------------------------- (Moderator, please don't delete what I've written the same in the relevant tournament thread, as it would be easier to find that post here for further discussion if anyone is interested. Thank you very much).
Don’t delete same post in a different thread because it’s easier to find in this thread? Then this post will take priority as we prefer not to have double posts.
But the problem is not many people come to the players thread except for those that involve the top guns or the new sensations, so if we don't have it in the tournament thread to generate interest for further discussion here in the concerned player's thread, it'll likely not be much noticed. Furthermore, having it in both threads will make it easier to search for the relevant discussion later once the tournament is over, otherwise whatever is/was posted might be lost or lie buried and forgotten in the course of time. Frankly, it doesn't cost you anything to have certain key posts repeated in both locations as the benefits outweigh the disadvantages,if I may say so. Kindly accommodate my request. Thank you very much.
