I'm perhaps opening a can of worms here, but I am so puzzled by the outcome of the All England MS final.
I think that most of us were banking on a win for Lin Dan, but Chen Hong decided to surprise us all. I have never considered Lin Dan "unbeatable", and although he has not been very successful during recent years, Chen Hong is a formidable player.
So why do I have a bad taste in my mouth? Perhaps because of the circumstances? Perhaps because I happen to believe that NOBODY is good enough to beat a trying Lin Dan by 15-2. Think of it: is it likely that ANY of the players currently in the top ten (I am sure that could be extended) would lose a game 2-15?
As I see it, Lin Dan must have given up the fight. For the sake of reasoning, let's assume that was the case. Then several questions follow: was he injured? If not, did LYB order him to throw the match (it wouldn't be the first time he ordered such a thing)? If so, why? Chen Hong is currently #5 in the world ranking, so there is no obvious need for him to gain more points for the WC. And besides, he was already in the final, and I think the difference in collected ranking points is just over 1000 between the AE winner and the runner-up. This hardly justifies a "fixed" match, even looking at it with LYB's eyes.
I would really appreciate to hear more from those members that actually saw the match. So far, all the reports I have read directly or indirectly suggest something strange was going on. Although he would never suggest foul play, even IBF's Raphael Sachetat describes Lin Dan as "another man" after the 1st game. To me, Lin Dan seem like the kind of guy that, if injured, he'd rather retire the match than lose like this. Some reporters have suggested "tiredness" or "lack of motivation", but then how does that happen during a 90-second break after having won the 1st game convincingly by 15-8? And it seems that Chen Hong didn't really change his game, he just kept on doing what he did in the 1st game...
Does this smell as bad as I think it does, or am I just being paranoid?

I think that most of us were banking on a win for Lin Dan, but Chen Hong decided to surprise us all. I have never considered Lin Dan "unbeatable", and although he has not been very successful during recent years, Chen Hong is a formidable player.
So why do I have a bad taste in my mouth? Perhaps because of the circumstances? Perhaps because I happen to believe that NOBODY is good enough to beat a trying Lin Dan by 15-2. Think of it: is it likely that ANY of the players currently in the top ten (I am sure that could be extended) would lose a game 2-15?
As I see it, Lin Dan must have given up the fight. For the sake of reasoning, let's assume that was the case. Then several questions follow: was he injured? If not, did LYB order him to throw the match (it wouldn't be the first time he ordered such a thing)? If so, why? Chen Hong is currently #5 in the world ranking, so there is no obvious need for him to gain more points for the WC. And besides, he was already in the final, and I think the difference in collected ranking points is just over 1000 between the AE winner and the runner-up. This hardly justifies a "fixed" match, even looking at it with LYB's eyes.
I would really appreciate to hear more from those members that actually saw the match. So far, all the reports I have read directly or indirectly suggest something strange was going on. Although he would never suggest foul play, even IBF's Raphael Sachetat describes Lin Dan as "another man" after the 1st game. To me, Lin Dan seem like the kind of guy that, if injured, he'd rather retire the match than lose like this. Some reporters have suggested "tiredness" or "lack of motivation", but then how does that happen during a 90-second break after having won the 1st game convincingly by 15-8? And it seems that Chen Hong didn't really change his game, he just kept on doing what he did in the 1st game...
Does this smell as bad as I think it does, or am I just being paranoid?

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