Kento Momota (new thread)

Discussion in 'Japan Professional Players' started by visor, May 12, 2020.

  1. Quentin11

    Quentin11 Regular Member

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    Actually I am one of these people. But I have to be realistic.

    But don't read into the CTC match. CTC is passive and Momota managed to attack him a bit. Even then he made a lot of mistakes.

    I am in no way discrediting other players. I mean for sure they have approved.

    But this guy isn't Momota. Part of me hopes that he will be able to start his engine if he plays every possible tournament
     
  2. galaxyduo

    galaxyduo Regular Member

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    From the Ginting vs Momota match today, Momota looked out of gas in the 3rd set. There could be a lot of reasons why Momota is more out of gas now, versus his 2018/2019 form. Maybe Momota is just not as fast, and he is more inconsistent than the 2018/2019 Momota, so he needs to use more energy to make up for being slower and being more inconsistent.

    I remember when LD won the 2013 championship, LD was playing some of the most defensive badminton I had seen from a top MS player. LD just didn't smash much, and kept rallying, and letting his opponent make the mistakes. But LD won anyways. Back in 2013, LD was still fast enough and consistent enough to get away with a defensive style and win.

    Fast forward to after the 2016 Olympics, LD started to decline. He still tried to play the same defensive style, but he was just slower, and he got to the shot slower too, so it was so easy for his opponents to play against LD's defensive style. LD's defensive style didn't really work as well after 2016. LD would get to the WC finals one more time in 2017, only to lose to Viktor at the WC. But the writing was on the wall for LD, he would only get slower and less consistent, as his age took over his body.

    I remember that Momota would sometimes play very defensive in 2018/2019, and he would still win anyways, because his opponents made the mistakes. And then if Momota ever got to the 3rd set in 2018/2019, because he played so defensive in the sets before, he still had a lot of energy/stamina in the 3rd set. Momota was playing like LD at times in 2018/2019, just playing defensive and letting his opponents make the mistake. And then Momota would inject pace in the 3rd set, to pull away and seal the match.

    For whatever reason, Momota can no longer inject that pace in the 3rd set these days. He doesn't have the stamina, and he just looks tired in the 3rd set. And to be fair to Ginting, Ginting also played a lot of matches this Thomas Cup so we can't say that Ginting is fresh because he played less matches.
     
  3. LenaicM

    LenaicM Regular Member

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    Quite ironic to see all the negativity directed towards KM by the same fanboys who called him a legend before he even finishes his career. I had been crucified for much less than that by the same people (and insulted/menaced through PM on a personal level) who are now the one constantly disminishing other players and their performances.

    Looking back to a couple of years ago when KM dominated the Tour during what appears to have been a transition period (many retirements / many newcomers on the scene), may be it was not that unreasonable from me to say "let's wait before we can call KM a legend or the GOAT". Which was frankly just that.

    That being said, he might not be finished, altough it feels like the Tokyo 2021 fiasco has affected him quite a lot. It was surely his best chance at medaling at the OG and he knows it. He won the rest. Hard to stay at the top when you already won almost everything, which makes the performances of some of the legends of the sport even more admirable.
     
  4. justiceforlcy

    justiceforlcy Regular Member

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    At this point some people can’t even accept Momota for who he is currently. Rather, they expect him to be that “ideal version” of himself back in his prime no matter what. He is also just a human.
     
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  5. Quentin11

    Quentin11 Regular Member

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    Doesn't make any difference though if these people can accept or not right. Don't let it bother you that much :)
     
  6. Bryan Wong

    Bryan Wong Regular Member

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    Watching K. Nishimoto vs J. Christie today, I wonder how these the two Kentos would stack up against each other now.

    Nishimoto has much more positive movement and attacking play on the court;
    Importantly he doesn’t get stranded on court when smashes come.
     
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  7. lodoss

    lodoss Regular Member

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    The fact that there is much discussion on him is perhaps because of the expectations we have for him (most to see him rise than fall, right?) ,and we still view him as a top player who still has a number of years to go given his age. As the world continue open out and tournaments coming one after another, we'd see whether Momo can overcome his setbacks. Personally I hope he fully recover from any medical complications suffered in the past, blurry vision after accident, covid (people have different symptoms and recovery duration).

    Looking at his thought after the accident, I'm happy to see him back on the court. If I feel sad seeing him lost to lesser-ranked players now, I'd just his WC 18 & 19 final in youtube to watch (same for my fav MD pair, the Daddies) :D.
    https://olympics.com/en/news/momota-kento-thought-of-giving-it-all-up-after-accident
     
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  8. galaxyduo

    galaxyduo Regular Member

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    I wouldn't be so optimistic about this. Age affects every player differently. Taufik retired at around 31 years of age. If my recollection is correct, he maintained a top 5 ranking up to around 28/ years of age or so, and then he started declining rapidly. I think Taufik's prime was when he was around 22 to 24 years of age.

    Momota is already 27 years old. This is not to say, age will work against Momota the same way it did on Taufik. But seeing how age affected Taufik, you never want to assume a player has many years ahead at the top level.
     
  9. Nine Tailed Fox

    Nine Tailed Fox Regular Member

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    Look, how they are chewing my boy alive in this thread.

    I thought people liked their steak well done but here I am seeing they would do well with raw and alive meat as well.

    Back to Kent, I think he is tournament or three away from his denmark open form last year.
    Mark my words.
     
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  10. - иεvvεи٭т -ツ

    - иεvvεи٭т -ツ Regular Member

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    Wow... that's some major fanboy insecurity to attack you personally. How dare you voice an opinion that doesn't align with theirs...:rolleyes:
    Agree with your last sentiment, hopefully they get Shoji Sato back to coach and work on his confidence.
     
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  11. Quentin11

    Quentin11 Regular Member

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    I mean let me make something very clear here. Because it seems that some people are having the wrong idea.

    Even though I am currently freaking criticizing Momota and his coaches relentlessly. For me MOMOTA is still a LEGEND and a GOAT! Let that sink well in your brains.

    Doesn't mean that I cannot criticize a LEGEND or a GOAT when they are not performing to the standard. On the contrary this should show you my objectivity.

    Part of what makes me criticize his game is that I know what he can be. And I heard too much BS on what kind of training he is going through and the limited appearance in tournaments. And the stuffs which should have been rectified right now such as stamina and speed and general fitness. But it is still zero.

    It's not complicated what I am saying here and what my position is about Momota. I wonder how some people here would do if they were fans of Formula One where the Driver Talent and Car Performance comes into play lol. Some people here would feel very lost.

    It is also laughable how some people here are still burnt by some comments made in the past lol. Wow. Taking commenting on forums very seriously. They must be pro. :D:D:D
     
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  12. visor

    visor Regular Member

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    Unfortunately, I think his injuries are more serious, and deeper than just bruises. He had a serious concussion on his left face around the orbital area, with an undiagnosed orbital fracture that was not recognized until some weeks later.

    More serious than that is the mechanism of injury which is usually associated with traumatic brain injury. He may be able to recover physically from his accident, but his anticipation and visual reaction times do not seem as sharp as they used to be. His team seriously needs to recognize this and rehabilitate him in this aspect. Unfortunately I'm not confident that this can be returned to his previous level.

    Sent from my SM-G988W using Tapatalk
     
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  13. Hbmao

    Hbmao Regular Member

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    You sound like he should just retire. How did he win the Bali tournament last year with such an injury?
     
  14. lodoss

    lodoss Regular Member

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    Ya, he seems slower and unsure when judging shots that are closed to the side lines. How much he is still suffering from the after effects of that accident, is not as obvious as what we can see from Li Xuerui when she returned back to court after her horrible injury in Rio.
     
  15. Quentin11

    Quentin11 Regular Member

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    @visor

    You are right but sometimes I see stuff which makes me doubt it.

    For the vision and reaction time that's right - he is not like his former self. 100% no arguing with that.

    But what about the rest?

    Stamina and Speed - I know this is also connected with the vision and reaction but still. 40 shots and he is getting tired.

    Secondly, at times you will see him just looking at the shuttles going past him. But then at times he would go for it and actually get it. Is this a sort of lack of fighting spirit or lack of interest? Idk. I mean look at Nishimoto - he is just going for each and every shuttle even if he is falling or dropping dead. He is just going for everything. Look at Yamaguchi. But Momota no - he feels like Naraoka. Like he is giving up. This to me seems like a mental issue - Why isn't the team focusing on that? We've been seeing that for a while now.

    Third is that it is clear to us and to commentators that Momota's reaction time is no where near to what it was. Why isn't the team focusing on that? There are multitude of exercises which improve reflex and reaction time. He was former World No. 1 - budget shouldn't be an issue.

    Fourth - a very simple thing. Let the dude play as many tournaments as possible. Is it because he is No. 2 that he cannot play lower tourneys??
     
  16. Justafan90

    Justafan90 Regular Member

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    Do you really think he gives up like naraoka? Like he goes oh well, its too good a shot, i cant reach it, oh well.
     
  17. Quentin11

    Quentin11 Regular Member

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    It seems like it - look at this expression
     
  18. Nine Tailed Fox

    Nine Tailed Fox Regular Member

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    If the injury was that decapacitating, how come he destroyed everyone in the Denmark and Indonesia Open last year?

    Didn't he win 21-0 against Jonatan Christie?
     
  19. lodoss

    lodoss Regular Member

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    Momo finished runner-up in Denmark Open and won the Indonesia Master last year. So if consistency is the issue, then at least its good news to me.
     
  20. Quentin11

    Quentin11 Regular Member

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    Is it Heo's fault?
     

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