LD said the difference was that the AE was him relatively fresh, as opposed to the Rio games where LD had a physically and mentally draining loss in 3 long games to LCW (and tho LD has the class not to say it, i will.... only a bronze medal to play for.)
Lee Chong Wei ( 李宗伟 )
- Thread starter tbleong
- Start date
LD said the difference was that the AE was him relatively fresh, as opposed to the Rio games where LD had a physically and mentally draining loss in 3 long games to LCW (and tho LD has the class not to say it, i will.... only a bronze medal to play for.)
I think it's OK either way. If my opponent does it, i don;t see it as a threat, just that he's pumped up for the match and it usually makes me play better too. I wilt sometimes when my opponent gives me no emotion... start thinking, 'he's cruising, barely trying'. LOL.
There's some truth to that. It's also true that LCW has been very supportive of the juniors development, and a model example. He's not a selfish guy, but equally he can't afford to be entirely altruistic either. Not when he's only got a couple more chsnces to land an elusive World Championship. The paradigm itself puts LCW and Morten into opposition. Now, I'm a big fan of LCW, and I don't think he's being 'precious'. He genuinely feels undermined, and then there's the mat incident, and the fact that Morten is sort of in his 'chain of command' but not a resource, and is hinting he should retire. (MF should not have said that. The rest I can understand, but that;s just selfish. Maybe even malicious.)
I have met LCW a few times and he's a gracious guy, and quite genuine, but i think there's a stubborn streak and a fair bit of pride there too. He isn't the sort to take a slight, and Morten is pretty single-minded in doing HIS job for HIS players - and LCW is not his responsibility. I blame BAM for only belately realising this is a disaster waiting to happen. They should have structured stuff differently. I think it's sad. Because I think Frost would have been an AWESOME 1-on-1 coach for LCW, imparting some of his sangfroid on LCW, making him even better at closing out the big matches. But that didn't happen.
What did Axelsen and Vittinghus do BTW?
A lot of sour grapes from the Danes, clearly. Axelsen is just wrong saying LCW aims for the body all the time when he has an easy kill. He sometimes does it, but at the level they play at,you can't always avoid the player. If you do, they'll do their homework, pick up on it, and maybe get a few of those back. Hell, its not like its going to injure you, unless you get hit in the eye. The only thing i might say is LCW doesn't always apologise if he does hit you with the shuttle. A bad habit he's picked up at some point, perhaps coaches saying you need to be less of a nice guy more ruthless etc.
As for the 'arrogance'... No. Not really. He's businesslike while he's doing his job, doesn't use gamesmanship, doesn't tamper the shuttle or give his opponent grief during the rallies, is respectful of opponent and umpire. And afterwards, he always has something nice to say to his opponent, win or lose. I'd like to play him, honestly
Vittinghus is more balanced in what he says. The worst thing he says is accusing LCW of showboating. Well, the only thing i've seen LCW do like that maybe is this hold and flick from the net up the line. but Peter Gade did that all the time and nobody calls that arrogant. Because LCW's usual play is more methodical, perhaps it comes across as showboating, but to me its just a sign of confidence. The only other thing i've seen is this wierd pirouette - turning 360 degrees and running after the shuttle - but he does that when wrong-footed in huge matches with CL or LD, so i'm going to say that is unusual but not showmanship.
Either way. I don't think LCW is going to lose any sleep over it.
It's quite humble actually, when you think about it. in tennis terms, Djokovic and Murray are the men you'd put money on, whereas Fed and Rafa are the guys who might play a blinding tournament once in a while when their bodies allow it and the conditions suit their game. Manwhile LCW and LD are still part of an elite top 3, with little between them and CL.
iT'S an interesting comparison on another level, too, because LD is arguably the all-time greatest player, much as Federer may well be in tennis. But LCW is a worthy foil for LD, because of his ultra-consistent performance in the SS - just as Rafa was for Federer in tennis but for a compltely different reason, in the latter case it was Rafa's domination of the head-to-head battles.
A real cynic would say LCW had a lovely draw, which opened up further once CL lost to Saensomboonsuk. But then i would say, he was by far the best player in the tournament - more committed than Lin Dan, more consistent than CL. He came into the tournament on 1.5 legs, and crafted a game style that allowed him to pressure his opponents and use his speed without worsening his injury. He played with a cool mind and great self belief. in a lot of ways he showcased the best of what he is as a player. Courageous, committed, dedicated, and how complete a shotmaker and athlete he is. I think paradoxically the injury helped him be methodical and play disciplined stuff. And nobody - except Chou Tien Chen - had a clue how to stop him imposing his game. He WON the AE playing throughout on a really bad injury that it is clear has not fully healed even now.
Undue pessimism. Even China can't dominate every single tournament. There's a lot more competition now across every discipline, not because China are necessarily getting worse, but because the rest of the world are catching up, even in disciplines like WD which used to be an all-Chinese affair in the finals. Women's Singles is class right now - Marin, Newhal, Sindhu, Intanon and my favourite Tai Tzu Ying from the rest of the world and probably anyone in the Top 10 can win a SS. China arguably disappointing in MD tho, i think they'll get it right eventually, and in Mixed, they have a lot of talents. MS predictably LCW or CL every tournament for the next year. Personally happy its not chinese domination across the board. its nice at the moment that there are so many countries represented at the top level, even from countries like Spain, Taipei that aren't traditional powerhouses. Lots of different styles.
badlove
Regular Member
Wow great post! I really like this one last part.
j4ckie
Regular Member
As for the showboating/arrogance, I've seen it a few times in easier matches in earlier rounds. Makes it quite obvious that he doesnt take the opponent seriously, turning lazily for a backhand, walking around on court and intentionally playing a worse shot due to that, playing trickshots (most of which are utterly useless as the motion is huge)...A lot of sour grapes from the Danes, clearly. Axelsen is just wrong saying LCW aims for the body all the time when he has an easy kill. He sometimes does it, but at the level they play at,you can't always avoid the player. If you do, they'll do their homework, pick up on it, and maybe get a few of those back. Hell, its not like its going to injure you, unless you get hit in the eye. The only thing i might say is LCW doesn't always apologise if he does hit you with the shuttle. A bad habit he's picked up at some point, perhaps coaches saying you need to be less of a nice guy more ruthless etc.
As for the 'arrogance'... No. Not really. He's businesslike while he's doing his job, doesn't use gamesmanship, doesn't tamper the shuttle or give his opponent grief during the rallies, is respectful of opponent and umpire. And afterwards, he always has something nice to say to his opponent, win or lose. I'd like to play him, honestly
Vittinghus is more balanced in what he says. The worst thing he says is accusing LCW of showboating. Well, the only thing i've seen LCW do like that maybe is this hold and flick from the net up the line. but Peter Gade did that all the time and nobody calls that arrogant. Because LCW's usual play is more methodical, perhaps it comes across as showboating, but to me its just a sign of confidence. The only other thing i've seen is this wierd pirouette - turning 360 degrees and running after the shuttle - but he does that when wrong-footed in huge matches with CL or LD, so i'm going to say that is unusual but not showmanship.
Either way. I don't think LCW is going to lose any sleep over it.
Its not a huge deal to me, but I can see how some players would hate that kind of behaviour. Especially someone like HKV who believes in giving 100% in every match and rally, but as far as I've heard, his criticism was pretty mild.
Regarding the issue with hitting opponents, it's not something I've noticed with LCW, but I've certainly seen that Asian players in general tend to apologize a bit less than the Europeans, especially for net cords, but also for stuff like that (and celebrating their opponent's unforced errors). Seems to be a slight cultural/philosophical difference.
Rob3rt
Regular Member
Yeah, sure. Why play for a medal at the Olympics when you can get a semifinal spot at the All England?!
mrdeception
New Member
From Shuttleflash.
Rob3rt
Regular Member
You beat me to it. I was about to share this excellent video.
The way ShutteFlash implements badminton gossip, recent matches, highlights, slow motion shots and music into his videos is second to none (in the badminton world). You know he's got to be a really passionate badminton spectator/player. So ShuttleFlash, if you are reading this: Thanks for making the best badminton videos on YouTube!
On the contrary, I believe LCW, lately, has been selfish, ungrateful and if I may say so, stupid.
Selfish because he gets the lion share of coach time and the juniors have to support him at the expense of their own training. If the juniors get to spar with him often, it would show up in their tournament performance. That has not been the case. If LCW wants 3 vs 1 and ' feeding shuttles' support, BAM should arrange outside help and not use his juniors. If BAM is not willing to pay for it, then LCW should. The money is peanuts as a percentage of his earnings. If LCW thinks outside help may not be good enough, these people can be offered incentives to put in their best effort, like getting a bonus when LCW wins the next title, because the 3vs1 and feeding shuttles is a mindless job.
Ungrateful because he doesn't realise what MF has done for him. If it had not been for MF convincing BAM about LCW s talent and going to Penang to get him back to KL, LCW wouldn't be in badminton today. ( He could have been a gangster, contractor or shopkeeper, who knows.) If it had not been for MF assigning Hendrawan to coach LCW, Rashid would still be coaching him. As for the media claim about MF asking him to retire, well, LCW should reflect on what was actually meant. MF speaking to Hendrawan in English, Hendrawan translating it into Bahasa to LCW and LCW figuring it out in Hokkien. Make a guess how much is warped in the triple translation.
Stupid because he refuses to change the way he trains. He expects MF to do it his way instead of changing and learning from MF s way. Would LCW be able to win WC? Unlikely unless MF is his tournament coach. At his level, matches are won on tactics and MF is a tactics expert.
Wow, strong words. Impressive.
Bit surprised you write like this when you wrote the following about me before.
Even I am impressed, really a surprise coming from her. Not only this post but also the previous one about MF, so sensible, rational and judicious.
Definitely a different perspective. More successful is very hard to say.