No. He disappointed me like anything. I kept eating all the excuses people gave for his poor performances. He didn't want to win... Not ready... Blah Blah.... His overconfidence, and complacency made him lose what could have been his.. the unprecedented third Olympic Gold!
Does anyone know what is the logic behind having this pairing of Xu Chen, and Fu Haifeng? Both are senior players, and usually senior players are merged with juniors to help juniors. What is the point of this pairing?
There is no way Chong Wei or Lin Dan would have won that gold after that Semi final. Chen Long's SF was too easy both on physical and mental level.
Probably just to keep them active while CBA figures out what to do with them. Or it could just be like a vacation and get some free prize money.
Nah... A Lin Dan with even half his smashes and aggressiveness of 2008, would have been the winner. All through the season I kept looking at Lin Dan, and kept wondering to myself where his smashes were. Where was his aggression? Why is he so passive? When will Lin Dan enter his higher gears? And all through out the season I kept consoling myself with the belief that Lin Dan will step it up when the right time comes, that he doesn't care about anything other than the olympics, and that he is saving his strength for the Olympics. As I have said before, Lin Dan is the younger among him and LCW, but he seemed like an Uncle in front of LCW's fitness.
And I wonder why is Lin Dan not announcing retirement already... there is no use not doing so. He ain't getting any biggies from now on, and the small things he wouldn't want. What is the use delaying the announcement? Let's close this badminton business, and focus on selling undergarments again...
Lin Dan has a lot more mileage than Lee CW despite being a year younger. He emerged as a huge threat to Taufik Hidayat back in 2003 already. He was given the responsibility of bringing Olympic Gold and had the mental burden accordingly back in 2004. He had a relevant role in China's 2004 Thomas Cup victory and usurped Peter Gade as the All England Champion in the same very year. Don't think Chong Wei was a relevant threat in Important tournaments till 2006.
What you are doing is justifying his mental lethargy. I can understand the reasons. But these reasons can't be used if you want to win your third Olympic Gold. When LD set his mind on his third gold, he should have left everything aside, and focused on his badminton exclusively. For however many undergarments he sells, he would always be remembered for his Olympic Titles.
I wonder how well Lin Dan was prepared for the Olympics compared to Chen Long. The team seemed more invested in Chen Long seeing how Lin Dan was still sparring with weaponless Tian Houwei till they left for Rio. Lin Dan's hesitation in the crunch moments left me thinking whether he knew what his success mantra was going to be. Satisfied with controlling the rallies and hesitating to go all out wasn't the most ideal plan to me.
I think MD will open up considerably given LYD's retirement and the fall of Ahsan/Setiawan. By the way, heard from the Danish commentator that FHF wants to win Gold in Tokyo? Good to see an "old school" wanting to continue playing.
Sato... more than the result it was how she tackled sindhu.. Hardly lifted the shuttle and sindhu couldn't play to her potential.. Sindhu was always on retrieving mode. Sindhu did well but it wasnt enough... Sato seems like a dangerous player. Very tricky and very unusual and exceptionally fast and deceptive... Big fan of her from today onwards..
