Li Xuerui has much more potential as a player than SXW. It seems as if she still has to sort out some mental things in order to make it really happen.
Wait, Li Xuerui is 174cm tall? During her match against WSX, she looked the same or slightly shorter than WSX......
No, I think she realizes it is too hard to play like she did in 2012. Better save yourself for the big ones, keep her ranking if possible but avoid to much strain. See what happened to Chen Jin in 2010. He got his world title but was finished after that.
She does have a weakness! The biggest one is the stamina issue. It has haunted her back to the date when she was a teenage player. I remember once WX once said about LXR's problems is like that, If you are capable of dragging LXR into the decider, you will have much more confidence to defeat her. The same also said by JYJ, her another teammate. LYB, in an interview last year, talked about the outlook of chinese WS players. He said that LXR has "almost" become a chinese WS symbolic, but she must overcome her stamina issue. Is it one of the reasons why she always wants to finish a match as quick as possible? In a word, stamina was , and still is her achilles heel! She has to work really hard to get over it.
Comparing to WYH and WSX, I do think LXR does seem kinder. But instead of calling her having a kind heart, I would say she is calmer and less emotional.
LXR knows her Olympic gold medal was the result of WSX's misfortune. Her subconscious mind telling her to be nice to WSX. That is part of the reason why she is losing two times in a row to WSX. Of course WSX was playing her best badminton at the moment. I don't see LXR losing 3 times in a row to the same player.
Is it just me or has LXR's performance dropped after moving away from the N50-III? I'm half-kidding here. But I remember her playing much better when she was still using the gold N50-III.
Almost suffering first defeat from the hand of non Chinese in 2014. I bet she would not trying to come from behind when trailing 15-19 if her opponent was her teammate.
No kidding. Many do think N50-III was one of the reasons why LXR was defeated in WC. But she has switched back to N50-II since the super series final.
3 losses, all to her teammates. LXR still hasn't lost to non Chinese player. She will beat all her teammates in majors.
maybe LYB has already demanded that WSX takes gold in rio'16 ...this has affected her so much that she has become 'incomprehensible'... -
It's definitely too early for LYB (in consultation with his coaches) to make the Olympic selection. Besides, I trust he will only pick the best two WS who can deliver gold for CHN based on certain objective , impartial criteria, knowing him to be a hard-headed and pragmatic person (remember, LXR was selected over WSX for LOG'12). I feel that, for the time being, LXR is concentrating too much on winning the 'foreign wars' i.e. beating the foreign opponents, the most important criterion as far as LYB and Co. are concerned that she has unwittingly overlooked or failed to pay sufficient attention to her internal competitors (fellow teammates). Don't expect LXR to willingly relinquish her pole position. Now that she has lost twice to WSX, at the AE and the IND Open, and once to WYH at the SIN Open, all within the space of little more than a month this year, she will have to take stock of her current situation and better prepare herself henceforth, particularly for the major championships and the Rio Olympics when the time comes.
A significant change in the current setup of the WS stable in CBA is that Chen Jin is now quite clearly in charge. He has in all likelihood, been the driving force behind the resurrection -and reincarnation- of WSX, as well as the strengthening of some dangerously looming physical weaknesses of WYH, and these two players have appeared to have benefited greatly. Meanwhile, LXR appears to have been in a sort of limbo- not knowing exactly what is expected of her, and she goes about trying out some new stuff and getting into a different mind-space as and when the opportunity presents itself. This tells me that she is still LXR- a very intelligent girl who observes and thinks, analyses and tries to come up with solutions that most other players would never attempt. She pushes the envelope herself, increasingly does not wait for her coaches to guide her attempts. Personally, I'd like to believe her next "project" is to completely own the net. Now, the next few months should be propelling her towards an attitude of not playing/experimenting with her stable-mates on Sundays. When that finally happens, she will experience a satisfaction of knowing she is closer to closure. Then, she will be able to walk away any time she wants. After all, maybe that is really what she wanted to "learn" from LD. Meanwhile, she needs to ensure her physical condition and conditioning is #1 on the priority list. Just like LD.
