Rivalry of the Future - Kenichi Tago v/s Chen Long

Discussion in 'Professional Players' started by cobalt, Jan 28, 2011.

  1. cobalt

    cobalt Moderator

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    I was watching the R2 match between these 2 young players. It was "ab-so-lutely riveting!" to borrow from Gill's perceptive commentary.

    Both of them are young players, and are singled out as the ones for the future from their countries. Tago is already No. 1 player for Japan, while Chen Long has won the China SS 2010 and is on the way up. He is certainly one of the China players identified as with the most talent and potential.

    Both of them are still improving, and adding new weapons to their game, with every tournament they play. They are both fun to watch, and are not shy of expressing their feelings sometimes on court! :D

    They still need to learn the value of patience, but that will come with experience.

    Both have very contrasting styles. Chen Long is tall (and "Long") and excels at controlling the mid-court with his fast and accurate interceptions. He can be very dangerous from the back as well, and some of his cross-court half-smashes are lethal.

    Kenichi Tago is very quick, unbelievably good at retrieving shots others would never get to, and excels at the net and at play below the net. His court-craft is very clever, and many players have made the mistake of underestimating this pocket dynamo, to their misfortune.

    What is similar, to me, is their approach and attitude. Both are very, very nice guys, with great manners, often smiling, polite, and respectful of each other.

    Hopefully, we will see many great matches between these 2 warriors, in the years to come! The game will be the winner.
     
  2. Fidget

    Fidget Regular Member

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    I agree that both gentlemen are excellent players.

    I can't agree that this particular match was very exciting. Lots of short points ending with errors.
    It didn't help that the two commentators on the English feed (whom I respect greatly) sounded as though they were very sleepy.

    AT any rate, we can look forward to lots of good stuff from these two.
     
  3. ricebowl

    ricebowl Regular Member

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    Couldn't agree more with this thread. Both of them are young and have to yet to unleash their full potential.
     
  4. cobalt

    cobalt Moderator

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    What I liked in particular in this match, was that both of them demonstrated their unique strengths and styles; and emphasized the differences. Kinda like "yin/yang" (though not exactly :D)
     
  5. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    Somehow I cant see this as a future rivalry - after the AE, Tago pretty much disappeared, never coming very far in tournaments. Perhaps he'll improve and I'm just underestimating him, but as far as I'm concerned, CL has more potential and more opportunities to reach his full potential as well (China training is just superior to any other Nation except Korea - better sparring partners, more coaches,...)
     
  6. cobalt

    cobalt Moderator

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    I'm inclined to agree with your point re. training -- facilities, partners etc. However insofar as their capabilities go, I wodl put them on par at the moment. Your point about CL's likelihood of advancing/improving is valid, but there is nothing to say that KT will not do as well. He has impressed on numerous occasions over the past year. His propensity to slacken befuddles us all, and makes purists often grit their teeth! :D But there is absolutely no doubt about his potential, raw talent, and abilities. Another year or two of proper grooming, and he will be a thoroughbred. My 2c. :)
     
  7. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    Ya, good point. He showed at the AE that he has the talent (although he was a bit lucky with the draw). Getting through BCL who didn't play bad and was probably highly motivated to capture the big one with LD beaten was no piece of cake, even though BCL seemed to be hindered by his left knee in the third game.
    He showed real motivation, good tactical awareness, and great fighting spirit in that tournament (especially the final), but since then, I've kinda missed that. Of course, I haven't seen many matches because badminton is not shown in TV over here - I have to rely mainly on youtube. Anyway, he seems to slack off sometimes and lose focus/the will to fight in matches, reminding me of TH....although he isn't quite as prodigious :D
     
  8. limsy

    limsy Regular Member

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    beaten chen jin and bao chun lai in a row is abit lucky with the draw?
    beside lin dan and lee chong wei,who can did this?
     
  9. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    Well I'm quite certain that neither TH nor PG would have lost against him as they were both in good form there (and very motivated). Also, he couldn't meet LCW before the final...
    As I mentioned, BCL had knee problems from the 2nd game on, and somehow his style of play seems to suit KT (he's won a few times against him since then, I think). Chen Jin is also a player that should 'suit' Tago as he struggles to get a real offense going and Tago's attack is good enough to break through his defence...so he has trouble just retrieving everything like he does with other players.
    Don't get me wrong, he was really in great shape during that tournament, but as he was able to repeat that performance since then, it looks like a bit of a one-time thing to me. But that could just be my cynical, critical attitude^^
    Anywho, looking forward to seeing those players evolve. I HOPE Tago can challenge the next Chinese generation, as we need others to replace LCW(/TH/PG) as constant pain in LYB'S ass or badminton will get boring soon :p
     
  10. limsy

    limsy Regular Member

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    as a player who only train part time
    he did well enough as he already beaten cj,cl and bao chun lai
    with experience,he will be better
     
  11. pjswift

    pjswift Regular Member

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    Agree.

    Tago s outstanding because it s not easy to beat 3 CHN MS with his limited experience. First, it proves he has the stamina to match CHN MS, just like LCW. That s the no. 1 criterion to take out CHN.

    Second, Tago s play style is not that predictable yet. He s still improving so any CHN rote training based on video analysis may not be advantageous. Right now, Tago 's syllabus is too vague and wide to capture effectively for rote training.

    Third, Tago is refreshing because he can come back from behind to win a game and he has often won a match by winning G2 and G3 after losing G1. Against CHN MS no less.

    Certainly a player for LYB to watch out. And Tago s performing based on part time work!
     
  12. cobalt

    cobalt Moderator

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    Now you understand why BCers voted him Goofball of the Year 2010?? :D :D :D
     
  13. cobalt

    cobalt Moderator

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    Super observations! I'd like to add something here that IMO diffrentiates him from many others players of his generation.

    He isn't afraid of playing what many people would consider high-risk, low-return shots. He keeps doing that (and I suppose it frustrates many fans a lot!!) and you can see the kind of wry smile that he has on his face when it doesn't work out. But you have to give credit to the guy for making the attempt. The motive behind it is "if you don't try it, you won't master it."

    A lot of other players go for the percentage shots. Tago goes for the Taufik shot. That's what makes it so much more exciting to watch him. Some days, it all comes together; other days, it all goes horribly wrong. But sooner or later, with experience, the shots will be more on the success column than on the failure column.

    I have noticed that his coaches are also extremely supportive of him, no matter what. That IMO is a great thing for a guy who is still learning, expanding, experimenting. And you can see how much he loves being on the courts! :D This guy can get to be very, very good! :D
     
  14. LD rules!

    LD rules! Regular Member

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    Tago is only part time ? Well I guess you learn something new everyday :p

    I would agree that Tago will be up there in the future (he is already top 15) he has great potential, top coaches and I am sure his facilities will be very good aswell.

    I would say that in 2013 when most of the top 10 will have retired (LD, LCW, TH, PG, BCL etc even CJ won't be as prominant) he will be winning some of the SS events.

    I would also think that there will be others challenging.

    In 5 years time, Viktor Axelsen , Pisit from Thailand H.S. Prannoy, Flemming Quach, Evert Sukamta and many many more will be competitive in main draws, challenging people like Chen Long, Kenichi Tago and Du Pengyu.
     
  15. limsy

    limsy Regular Member

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    haha,i saw some word on my friend chinese new year shirt:stupid might fail,but smart never try
    hehe
     
  16. cobalt

    cobalt Moderator

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    Sounds like a rabbit!! :D
     
  17. lcleing

    lcleing Regular Member

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    Hmm...Off topic but most of the players don't have the luxury of training full time as they are earning below average wage. If I remembered correctly, Hans Vittinghus has to work part time in a delivery company and train at the same time. Martin Luungard and Jens Eriksen have their daily jobs to take care of during their active playing days as well.
    Marc Zwiebler was an economic student(not sure if he has graduated) when he reached the final of denmark super series last year. Most of the Malaysia backup players have to work in part time jobs/coaching to pay for their own expenses as they earn peanuts in the national team. And I am very sure many players from the other countries have to work as well(Canada, Australia and Japan as well).

    The players who have the luxury of training fulltime without worrying about their living expenses are from CHina, Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia(if you are established enough like Hafiz Hashim:D:D:cool::cool::eek::p).
     
  18. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    Yeah, the Chinese have a very efficient system. The only downside is there are a lot of ppl who drop out before they advance to the national team and as a result often have little to no job qualifications and have to struggle to make a living. In Germany, the national players are mostly "sports soldiers" (or however you try to translate that), meaning they're enlisted in the army and get paid - so as long as they play badminton, they have enough money for their expenses. On the downside, they can't make enough money to last them after they retire, so they have to study or work at the same time, limiting their training time. Although in Marc's case, that shouldn't be much - economics is easy^^ The hard part is getting a job afterwards :D
    There are also not too many coaching positions that are paid well. Badminton is pretty much a minor sport here, so I guess the only well-paid coaches are those of the national team and perhaps one or two in the national league.
    I really envy guys like JJS, LYD - they can follow their passion without worries, LYD probably earns a lot for advertisements as he is the pretty-boy of the Korean team :D Oh, how I wish I had discovered badminton earlier^^
     
  19. LD rules!

    LD rules! Regular Member

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    I know that HKV and Marc were part time, but I wasn't aware that Tago was aswell, oh well, I suppose as long as it doesn't affect your performance it shouldn't really matter as long as you can fit your training in as well as your job.:)
     
  20. pjswift

    pjswift Regular Member

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    I understand from someone during TC10, that Marc Z' s family is rather rich,so no work worries for him.
     

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