Wow, this is a toughie. I think the big problem with jump smashes is that you kind of sacrifice one thing for another depending on what you want out of it. Dong Jiong's jumpsmash was just raw power. You often saw him smash and rush to the net for the easy kill due to the weak return. Zhao Jianhua made the jump smash look so easy (and easy to win points with). Liem Swie King had a very stylish smash. Yang Yang was all about speed, and his jump smashes reflected that. He goes up, hits, and back down in what seems to be a nanosecond. As far as current players go, KDM can generate one crazy smash when he's on. I like watching Xia's smash because hey, it's Xia. Candra has a very powerful smash, and of course there's Chen Hong. But I agree with David and Fu Haifeng is definitely one to look out for.
Besides those players you mentioned.. i remember a match between Candra/Trikush vs Choon/Lee.. As Lee was giving a deceptive lift , Trikush was actually in the mid-court nearer to the back.. he just Leap so high and it seems like a basketball Fade-Away.. i mean his vertical was almost 4 feet high , he gave a tremendous shout while he smashes the shuttle down crosscourt. The indos got the point. From all the smashes that i watch from various players.. i can say that smash is all CRAZY! It always sticks in my mind.
When did both of them meet ? But when Ants described reminded me of Luluk. He did something like that but not cross-court.
Does anybody notice that Peter Gade does not get as nearly high of a jump as say Lin Dan or Chen Hong i know they have different training methods, but Peter also always likes to jump from the back of the court too. Very effective though as his angles are perfect and if his slice shot is in, very devastating.
Gade used to be a devastating jumper on court. But since his injury he has changed style into an allround player with basis on his attacking style. Before he relied on that he was the fastest player in the world with the in my opinion fiercest jumpsmash, but the injury and coach forced him to change style and train his defence. Very sad in my opinion because Lin Dan is a true copy of the old Gade, Lin Dan just has a better mental strengh in my opinion.
Regarding Lin Dan copying gade, when watching the AE 2004 final gade v lin, they had exactly the same posture when receiving serve. Maybe this observation is based on the fact I have not watched enough badminton, but it does seem that lin bases his style on gade. I always wonder if Hendrawan at his peak (with his array of disguised shots) were to take on Lin Dan, who would come out on top: deception or speed. Hendrawan beat gade in the WC in Seville.
all I have to say is after watching Gade play in 2000 in contrast to how he played at AE 2004, his jump smash was incredible before his injury. So fast and such a quick, high leap to reach the shuttle early.
My vote goes to Zhao Jianhua...style, power, precision and effective. Not very beautiful to watch, but certainly a smash ever more powerful than his partner Kim Dong Moon, is Ha Tae Kwon...very very powerful.
Yeah, I remember seeing him in '88 Thomas Cup in Stadium Negara, partnering Ong Beng Teong. With his jumping smashes from the baseline, they beat Indonesia's second pair Liem Swie King and Ertanto 14-17, 15-1, 15-12 for a come from behind 3-2 semis win for Malaysia. And the Malaysian fans erupted "sungkit, sungkit!!!" every time he smashed.
