So before all the action starts lets do a quick analysis on the MS.Here are a few stats taking into the account the last 2 tournaments-Singapore Open and Malaysian Open.Since they were around one and half months after the Sudirman Cup and were in quick succession and they were the last tournaments before the WC,I have considered only these 2 tournaments as such.[Pics from Badmintonphoto.com] Again these Stats are only from the last 2 tournaments- #1 seed Lin Dan Matches Won-9 Matches lost-2 #2 Seed Kenneth Jonassesen Matches won-5 Matches lost-2 #3 seed Peter Gade Matches won-7 Matches lost-2 #4 seed Bao Chunlai Matches won-7 Matches lost-2 #5 seed Lee Chong Wei[Malaysian Open winner] Matches won-8 Matches lost-1 #6 seed Taufik Hidayat[Singapore Open Winner] Matches won-9 Matches lost-1 #7 seed Chen Hong Matches won-8 Matches lost-2 #8 seed Muhammad Hafiz Hashim Matches won-5 Matches lost-2 So if Statistics are to be given any Importance then Taufik Hidayat,Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan are contenders straight away.But Lee and taufik are the title winners in the recent 2,so if that gives them even a minute dege,they will take it. Peter Gade,Bao Chunlai and Chen Hong have also been very consistent which should again show us how close it's going to be. The only Players who have under performed are kenneth Jonassen and Hafiz Hashim.Unfortunately Hafiz's draw is not the greatest either. Wong Choong hann who has himself said that the fact that there is not much pressure on him to perform might make him do well at the WC but the fact also remains that he[Along with Ronald Susilo and Sony Dwi Kuncoro] have won just 3 matches from the last 2 tournaments.Lee Hyun II has infact done better than the trio. But Statistics even though important cannot decide anyone's fate at the WC.One long month of training and some of the players who have n't done well would aldready have left things behind them.So it's pretty much even except that few players are having a slight edge owing to their recent perfomances.But how much-we will soon see. All i have to say again is-It does n't get BIGGER than this. So let's see what's your say.
Thank you Dan_fan! I was wondering when will someone start a thread like this. I think there is a high chance that we will have a high quality Lin Dan Vs Taufik final. Here's how I see it, please comment! LIN DAN Lin Dan is 1st seed and even tough he hasn't lost any games this year until recently I will put him has top contender to win the gold (he always reached semis). Everyone is scared to play him because he is so fast and can adapt himself to any type of game, I think he is a counter attack player who has very offensive oriented weapon. Gade even said once that Lin is a hard oponnent because you can't play too much defense or too much aggressive. Lin Dan is the type of player who play well against everyone and not just a specific type of player. Even tough sometime he is a bit arrogant, Lin is a smart player and has a very great mental strenght (Yeah but what about MO? keep on reading) . He won't have any problems to reach semi final for sure as he got a very good draw. The only player who can match him on paper is Taufik but he is on the other bottom 32 so no worries. IMHO What appened to him on MO was just an accident (sorry to LCW fan) and I'm sure Lin Can't wait to have a sweet revenge. The only player that I see who can upset Lin Dan in the top bracket is Chen Hong if he passes Gade and Hafiz if he can pass his very hard draw. If Hafiz wins this WC it is going to show that he is the cream of the crop and not a skillfull dark horse anymore. Taufik Hidayat After winning Taufik showed that he could match any player of the circuit. His record after Olympic Vs LD showed that he has an upper hand vs the 1st seed (2-1). Taufik is the type of player who is unpredictable, he can play really well or really bad depending on the day. If he is on form and I think he will be, any player should fear him. Like Lin, Taufik is very offensive minded but rely on his techniques more than his speed. Tight net shot followed by a smash is his trademark. From the draw things will start getting hot for him when he will have to face Thai #1 Boonsak (3-0) and the 2nd seed Kenneth J (2-0). If he manages to past these 2 he will have to play against the winner between LCW (1-1), WCH (3-5) and Bao (2-4). Luckily, he will only have to play 1 of these player because he doesn't really have a good face-to-face against them. I personally think WCH would be the hardest as Bao easily struggles in big events and LCW won against Taufik while he was injured. The Grand final: If everythign goes well we will have a legendary WC final. Both players are considered the best of the best and they have a tie record (2-2). I hope Taufik win but I think Lin is really hungry to win this title and to prove that he really deserve the #1 spot.
Too early to say that they will both meet in the finals.though personally considering the todraw i would like to see a Taufik-Lin/Taufik-Gade .The thing is if it is either then u can be sure of a great match as is shown in recent times. I do agree with you about Lin Dan.One thing about him that most other seeds dont have is the ability win even when not playing at his best[ against most players].in the sense when he's playing at his best we know how good he is.but even when he plays bad he really does not lose cheaply or the macth does not end soon.He has a very good lower limit to his game.[atleast 95% of the time] Taufik on the other hand[who's got a reasonable draw and i dont think he will mind much whom he plays in the semis even though his record is not great against any one who might reach there,;if he does of course] is looking great right now.But he can be erratic at times.And I hope that is not the case at the WC.When he plays at his best he is the player to beat. Gade as always is been consistent.But all the recent encounters with Lin Dan[if they both make it] he has ended up on the losing side.that might play on him slightly.Coz i am sure he will play good.He will try and match Lin Dan rally for rally but in the end he needs to win it.the worst case scenario would be that if the 2 get to play each other ,Peter loses due to lack of stamina.
But personally i think Peter Gade will have the crowd behind him if he does face Lin Dan in the finals. However this might not give him the edge to win over lindan. I think the person to look out for in this tournament is still Peter Gade.
Lee probably will not win in my consideration, even though he has been in splendid form recently, but he won't have the Malaysian home support and he seems too regular to beat one of Gade, Lin or Taufik when they are on, and they certainly will be in form at the WC. Hafiz on the other hand is a completely different player, erratic sometimes. When he is in the right mood and woken up in a certain way he can beat everybody even when they are playing very well, because he is highly talented, just lacking confidence sometimes and consistency. But Still I would go for on of the three earlier mentioned favourites.
hi all, based on the WC draw, this is my prediction MS Semi Final: 1. Lin Dan(Hafiz) vs Peter Gade(Chen Hong) 2. Chong Wei(Bao Chun Lai) vs Taufik(Kenneth Jon) MS Final 1. Lin Dan(Hafiz) vs Taufik(Chong Wei) Highest chances Champion will be: 1. Lin Dan 2. Taufik/Chong Wei 3. Hafiz
Why does everyone forget that Chen Hong won the All England title this year? I'd also like to point out that Hafiz hasn't really performed that well in the Singapore and Malaysia Open.
I am not counting him out either.But from the looks of it he will first face Gade and then[if he wins] Lin Dan.I doubt he can put it across both of them.He has won the AE,but if u remember it was Lin Dan who was uncharacteristically making errors in the 2nd and 3rd sets of the final.Still u cant take anything away from him.He was also recently runner-up in the SO.So his form his good.And we can expect a good show from him,BUT as for winning the title;the odds are against him.
To whom it may concern Home support doesnt *automatically* give anyone a championship. I am really ?????? why people in this forum keep hanging onto this notion. Home ground advantage can work against home players, folks! Heri Leconte of France, a great tennis player, has never won a French Open. Even as good as Yannick Noah, who has won only once during his entire career. Even a great New York Yankees dont always prevail in their home games.
Well, maybe it doesn't necesarily mean home support will help but considering that Lee Chong Wei's two 'big' tournament successes have come at home (and he is also unbeated locally for 2 years) i would say that he is one that benefits from home support. Rashid Sidek was another one whom playing at home made a big difference to.
Hi a question whatever happen to Prakash Padukone I used 2 watch him live And even manage 2 get his autograph,I believe he was living in U.K
Of course, both of them stand a chance. Realistically, Chong Wei stands a better chance judging from the draw but we know Hafiz can beat the odds when the limelight is not so much on him. Just hope that they will put up a good fight. Let's see what will happen from tomorrow ( Malaysian time).
Padukone retired long back.I am not sure exactly which year but i think it was around 1987 or so.He took part in the legends duel in Indonesia; and is currently running his academy in Bangalore.
