What shocks me is the fact that Koga and Saito are still on the Sudirman roster despite being perennial flops.
Still need another pair in worst case that Kobayashi/Hoki get injured. Cannot use Watanabe in MD, We are not sure that he was recovery 100% or not. Olympic year is near, don't take risk. Koga/Saito were still a best second choice now.
Momota says he wants to try to qualify for paris right? Not sure how much not getting selected for sudirman is gonna affect that
Just curious, which pair do you think should be chosen instead? Japan currently has one pair that could produce any kind of result, and even then, they're notoriously unreliable. XD is usually played last anyways so it might be a better strategy to put Watanabe in MD and try to get to 3 points before it gets to the fifth match. This is especially true against China. Realistically, Japan's chance of winning the XD is pretty low against Zheng/Huang.
Even Takei/Endo have more potential than Saito/Koga. Watanabe is certainly employable, but given his long absence from competitive MD, as well as questionable form, I don't think he is much of an option. Japan's best chances of winning lie with its female players, i.e., Yamaguchi, and possibly FukuHiro. But given the overall condition of the team, it really is frightening to think that Paris is only a year away.
I agree that Endo/Takei would have been the better choice, taking into account their ages and future potential. They probably would do no worse than Koga/Saito anyways so it would be a good experience for them. The only reason I could think of to justify bringing Koga/Saito is to have the option of fielding Koga/Watanabe. Watanabe's physical condition is a question mark though. Midorikawa/Yamashita would be another good option, but that won't happen. I am looking forward to the day when there will be two new pairs to replace Koga/Saito and Matsui/Takeuchi, who are only on the team due to a technicality. Any prediction on how dependable Naraoka will be? The ladies won't be able to get the team across the finish line by themselves.
Considering Naroka's recent performances, I don't think he's all that reliable, unless he's able to replicate the string of great performances he had earlier. The MS category as a whole is unsteady for Japan, as is MD. They have great performers, but often fall short of making it to the top, with an occasional semi or final here and there. Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk
Like kurako said, I would have preferred Takei/Endo over a pair that has been proven to NOT be reliable by any measure. I can understand that Koga/Watanabe is a possibility but it's not exactly a combo I consider as Japan's trump card either. Midorikawa and Yamashita would have been possible if Saito/Mido were brought as a third XD pair. Also, Matsui/Takeuchi annoys me as a pair -- bland, underwhelming, nothing particularly outstanding in terms of skills. I can't even trust them to win decent European pairs, let alone top Asian pairs.
I really cannot imagine Naraoka getting too far. I think that the top players now know how to counter him, and his rather inefficient playing style is taking a physical toll. You are right, the ladies won't be able to lift the cup alone. The NBA knows this, too, and I am currently visualising PJB saying something like, "we are not in this to win; this is merely a practice tournament for the Olympics". Sigh.
After Malaysia Master 2019, Momota lost everything. Now, when everybody start ''Olympic race'' at Sudirman, Momota will be start at Malaysia Master. This is the fate joke. The orange fire phoenix will turn to ashes, then return to its orange form again.
Yep, and 19-year-old Suizu Manami won the Mexican International Challenge. Hobara/Suizu Y. also managed to take the WD title at this particular tournament.
...and Muramoto lost to a Ukrainian in the SF at the same tournament.... He's going to need better results than this if he wants to remain on the team next year...or get lucky with the AJC draw again.... As for Hobara/Suizu Y., I'm still perplexed as to why this random/scratch pair was chosen for the team over Otake/Takahashi. Otake/Takahashi have more potential and, in my opinion, is also a better pair.
...and she also stopped off in Uppsala this week to pick up the WS title in the Victor Swedish Open, defeating the delightfully named Lo Sin Yan Happy (HKG) in straight games. Hina is a leftie, btw. https://www.badmintoneurope.tv/en-int/playerpage/1612092
Very impressive back-to-back tournament wins for Akechi. Is she in any national team in Japan? Junior national team maybe?
She was on the junior national team until this March, when she graduated from HS. Incidentally, her employer is Saishunkan, which is not a bad thing, because it means that Akechi probably gets to practice with Yamaguchi.
