I can't tell you how delighted I am to be rewarded with today's discoveries in terms of players who would not have the opportunity to showcase their talent if Team CHN had turned up even by half. Qualifying Round in Spore SS is an eye-opener of future stars. 1. Beryno Wong This MAS MS, who hails from the land of timber tycoons, is probably the most exciting MAS MS to watch after LCW. I believe he left BAM and wisely so, otherwise he would have rotted or got freeze dried for training and not competing like the other MAS MS. He played without a coach and disease-free of BAM. Well, one would have thought that after getting just 10 points off Sho Sasaki in G1, he would be a goner but no, he came back with a vengence.He displayed wonderful skills, smooth footwork and especially,astute tactics not seen in other MAS MS.Having sussed out Sho's weaknesses,he continued to pressure him and poor Sho lost confidence and caved in in G3 when BW did a LCW, ie reeling off many consecutive points in a flash, to win. In the second match against RG of Spore, BW again showed he's a slow starter.But RG had a freshness advantage; he had a walkover from a Kevin Gordon no-show and then a nice MD warm-up match. So it's BW's second match versus RG's first match in a day. I was hoping BW would win even though he probably would be tank dry tomorrow. And he nearly did, reeling off 7 points in a row at the G3 tail end, just two points short. Pity! BW, as I understand, is an independent and he probably would be discriminated against in BAM in terms of opportunities because he's an East Malaysian.Well, I like the way he carries himself, not unlike a MAS timber tycoon.(Something LCW can pick up on.For sure he's got stronger neck muscles than LCW!)) Of course, like most independents, the weakness is usually the stamina. I hope he's financed by some timber tycoons otherwise we will see little action from him. Does anyone know his contact? He's gotta come back to Spore to play, even in Cheers tournaments!This is the MAS MS to watch!
2. Gurusaidutt Like Beryno, it looks like future stars have unusual names. Gurusaidutt's name sounds like a teacher to me (from 'guru' meaning teacher in Bahasa) and he looks more like an academic than an athlete. He has such an intense look he may even unnerve his opponent unintentionally. What he lacks in terms of experience, he makes up for with unusual intelligence.( Defeating two KOR MS in one day, he made LiMao, the coach, look bad.The impression I can infer is that LM as a coach is good in honing the skills but the tactical sense has not been imparted or it lags behind. Skills can be developed but it's the tactics that's gonna win the match.) You gotta watch Gurusaidutt, courtwise, to really appreciate his intensity and intelligence.And his unbelievable neatness!
3. Ashton Chen How did his parents come up with such a name called Ashton? Spore's own MS, Ashton probably set a BWF record today. He played FIVE matches in one day. One XD, two MD and two marathon MS matches. And he still looked fresh after the fifth match. Not sure whether his legs would be rubbery tomorrow but mentally he's cobweb-proof so he can just move on with his play freely even when losing. Ashton's strength is his excellent defence and court awareness. Great to watch because he has such court presence.
5. Anastasia Russkihh and Hendra Setiawan What a match, I thought. Handsome Hendra and pretty Anastasia. In G1, I thought Hendra was so smitten by Anastasia, he couldn't concentrate on the badminton. Then I realised Hendra couldn't play his badminton because he missed his net territory. With both players wanting to cover net, how far can they go? If Anastasia wants to win, she's gotta find someone else. If the objective is to have a warm-up match to get a feel of the courts, Hendra's ideal.
4. Tai Tzu Ying TPE's only surviving WS qualifier, she's quite free-spirited yet feisty so she's a pleasure to watch.Even when down, she never showed it but would even choose to camouflage. When she's showing signs of fatigue (like making many simple mistakes in a row), she would mask it by getting ready for serve in a 'ready-to-kill' manner rather than the usual relaxed mode. With more experience and better skills, she would make her mark in time (and watch out for that unexpected backhand smash!) (where did the first version of this post disappear to. I wonder?)
I agree with you, Hendra's forte is at the net...so he probably finds it always difficult if he plays XD....
..thanks for the tidbit report, pjwsift.. Other than Tai Tzu Ying, and maybe Gurusaidutt and Ashton Chen (the ones mentioned above), how old is Beryno Wong??..
Beryno Wong is already 25. I think Guru is the one to watch in the future, think he's still very young. Never heard his name before he defeated Hafiz in the Indian Open.
I'm quite sure Beryno is 1986. That makes him the same age as Tan Chun Seang (Age 24). He has a facebook account under the same name.
Also, Beryno needs to thwart Sasaki's revenge in indonesia. They are matched up again in the qualifiers!!! Unless Sasaki (Seeded 1 Qualifier) gets promoted to the main draw which would be a bummer
It's no longer a surprise. She played from the qualifying rounds to the title in the Badminton Asia Championships and the runner-up then Liu Xin was also a qualifier
Sunday... Mew CHoo managed to lose in rubber. But yesterday, she was simply steamrolled like a beginner.
Sori for confusing u. Actually it is meant for pjswift. I was wondering if pjswift had any comments on this player
