Momota, according to the newspapers, has contracted influenza, but is only expected to miss the Malaysia Open. He will be joining the tour from the India Open. NagaMatsu, on the other hand, will be missing all three tournaments due to injury.
before his 2018-2019 dominance, he was injured for the start of the 2018 season, then he lost to Chou in the first competition.It is difficult to return to the top, his illness may be a sign
Very superstitious! If he has flu, his stamina and speed will decrease for a few weeks, even though it may seem he has fully recovered.
“The Nippon Badminton Association confirmed via twitter that world No. 16 Momota will not see action in the tournament as he was suffering from flu. He will also skip the next two tournaments, the Indian Open and Indonesian Masters.” https://www.thestar.com.my/sport/badminton/2023/01/07/a-blow-as-momota-withdraws-from-malaysian-open
Others will get a headstart on the season. What KM needed (imo only) was a regain of confidence and world tour rhythm, not more time to rest. It is getting harder and harder to see him making a comeback.
I checked the NBA's Twitter account just now, and it categorically states that Momota will play from the India Open. The main website, too, has updated the list of players entering the January tournaments, and Momota will participate in India and Indonesia. https://www.badminton.or.jp/playersInfo/docs/MalaysiaIndiaIndonesia_20230106.pdf
Japan's domestic ranking table has been updated to reflect the results of the All Japan Championships. Momota has regained his spot at the top of the table, followed by Nishimoto, with Naraoka in 3rd place. https://www.badminton.or.jp/ranking/docs/ranking20230101msrev2.pdf
@kurako You shared a video once, it was Momota playing with two young players - a male and a female. Was it Naraoka?
Nah, I don't think so. ----- It would be interesting to see Momota and Naraoka play a match, wouldn't it? Naraoka is really proving to be a thorn as far as top players are concerned, but somehow, I get the feeling that a 'non-attacking' player such as Momota would have the upper-hand. Watching Naraoka is entertaining though, not to mention stress-free, .... the reason being that I really don't care whether he wins or loses.
Ah, back in the days when watching Naraoka was painful due to his long play. Now I actually like watching him play Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk
I don't think the last version of Momota would be able to resist. Momota would not be able to get his smashes. Prime Momota is something else though.
Once Momota regain his hard working spirit again, things will get better. Right now, he appears a bit lazy to give his full heart. Maybe, he worries about something physical. Or maybe, he worries if he works hard and still lose then he will be judged harshly as having fallen behind others. Momota used to be very hard working in mind and in body. But now, mind a bit lazy and body a bit lazy. Only in Japanese tournaments, he becomes hard working. Accident and too much skills can make a person lazy. Good skills must be accompanied with the willingness to work hard and pay the price during practice and during live matches. Right now , I can see his skills now and then. But his mind appears a bit lazy to anticipate his opponents and to strategize his next shot. His body appears a bit lazy to lose energy. I don't know but I think he is also a bit more lazy to watch videos of his opponent's matches as before. A player with reasonable skills but willing to work harder can win a player with better skills but not willing to work too hard. Yes, working hard has more risk of injury but that is part and parcels of sports. Just have to train as correctly as possible so that instinctively your body knows what to do to save you from injury during intense pressure. In the last match I saw Akane fall down. But I think her fall actually helped her to avoid injury. If she insisted on taking the shuttle at such an angle, I would worry because I experienced ankle twist myself. Muscle too powerful but bone cannot take it. Anyway, maybe he just recovered from flu. I still support him and want him to become who he can be. I thank him for participating because it is important for him to keep in touch with how things are progressing with other players. Sent from my XQ-BT52 using Tapatalk
Momota did play today but was knocked out by Gemke in the first round 15-21, 11-21. First match of the day.
WHY MOMOTA WHY. Feels like his shot quality has improved (clearly not making as many errors), but movement is still lagging behind. Never lose hope for the return of the king.
Being hopeful here, I'm just gonna say it's he is still recovering from the flu and thus moving sluggish. I remember catching the flu once and it took a couple of weeks for me to finally get my strength back fully Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk
I beg to differ. I think his shot quality has not improved, it is still very poor. He is still also making many unforced errors which is not what he does. Movement is very slow but if you look at the quality of his blocks and net play against Gemke many were very high or in the net showing a lack of confidence or desire to win. His smashes and pushes from the net were poor as well. Momota's "down the line" smash from his backhand corner is a trademark shot that hardly ever goes out, and when it does it is usually only by a few millimeters but today they were going out by a few inches which by his standard is a country mile. Also his defense which is usually quite solid, was mediocre at best against an opponent that doesn't have an outstanding smash. Not sure if he is recovering from illness but this kind of form is not what you want to start the year with particularly when his teammates are at the top of their game.
