Singapore Smash 2026, Singapore, 2/19-3/1

[NextLevel]

Mima Ito is not evolving at all. It is so obvious what WYD or any other such high level pro player needs to do to beat Mima ITO. In past it used to be a nail biting/tough matches, but now it’s almost predictable Having a proper coach during these matches would also help her I think. But she doesn’t do that also. while other players are evolving and far more interesting to watch, she seems to have hit her ceiling

You make it sound like there are other players playing the style that she does who have done better in the history of table tennis.

 

[NextLevel]

I have a sneak suspicion that no one besides her own mother could tolerate her hence why?! Just my guess lol

She has an Olympics mixed doubles gold (first in history), Olympics singles bronze (first in Japanese women's history), Olympics silver and bronze team, and a world Championships singles bronze (as do Hirano and Hayata). She got that last bronze while having her mother coach her like she does now. If she wants to do something other than have a coach improve her game or tell her how to win, of all the players on tour today, she more than anyone else on the basis of her track record and results has earned that right, no matter how people want to spin it. Maybe if she didn't have that WTTC bronze, and had stated a desire for a WTTC singles medal, I would have been down with the criticism. But by current achievements, she is the greatest player amongst the Japanese women. That's a decent ceiling.

 

[zeio]

The excuses (equipment, throwing matches) are already in play. Hayata just can't win.

Ahem, first give a lecture to your boy Matsushima, and to be fair, Nagasaki as well. Hayata is also known for blaming the Singapore weather. Where were you when they needed your parenting?

 

[zeio]

Idk Patrick has played exceptionally this whole tournament, it's an outlier for Harimoto so I think it's hard to judge

Harimoto said he failed to adjust by G3 which was the point of no return. Also, the fangirls were against him, which has been his common "excuse" since Asian Games 2022.

 

[zeio]

You make it sound like there are other players playing the style that she does who have done better in the history of table tennis.

Oh please, look up the WS podium for Seoul 1988, will you? Ito is nothing even compared to the World Champion in WS of WTTC 1993. Read up, man.

 

[NextLevel]

Ahem, first give a lecture to your boy Matsushima, and to be fair, Nagasaki as well. Hayata is also known for blaming the Singapore weather. Where were you when they needed your parenting?

I really don't have time to read links so I will not. If you have anything to say, say it here. Otherwise, athletes get paid to win matches, they can make any excuses they want. When you show me your salary for ranking Uda and Togami and the consequences for failing to do so appropriately, I will cut you the same slack.

 

[zeio]

TIL Baldwin's nickname...

WTT Singapore Grand Slam Live Coverage | Wong Chun Ting and Doo Hoi Kem's Growth Story Emphasizes the Process and the Importance of Taking Responsibility
https://www.hk01.com/livesports/60325662/wtt Singapore Grand Slam Live Coverage - Wong Chun Ting and Doo Hoi Kem's Growth Story - Emphasizing the Process and the Importance of Taking Responsibility
"A few days ago in the hotel room, I told Nuomici (Chen's nickname) that it's better to lose decisively than to win vaguely. With clear planning, even if you lose, you know what you lost; with vague wins, you don't know what you wanted to do or what you did."

 

[zeio]

I really don't have time to read links so I will not. If you have anything to say, say it here. Otherwise, athletes get paid to win matches, they can make any excuses they want. When you show me your salary for ranking Uda and Togami and the consequences for failing to do so appropriately, I will cut you the same slack.

You're not fit to be a moderator with that kind of behavior. That's all. Part of the reason I turned down the moderator offer at MyTT had to do with my bashing Ishikawa, which would get in the way.

 

[NextLevel]

Oh please, look up the WS podium for Seoul 1988, will you? Ito is nothing even compared to the World Champion in WS of WTTC 1993. Read up, man.

Yeah, you can make your own points, I have made mine. We don't have to agree.

 

[NextLevel]

You're not fit to be a moderator with that kind of behavior. That's all. Part of the reason I turned down the moderator offer at MyTT had to do with my bashing Ishikawa, which would get in the way.

That's entirely fair and your opinion, which is probably shared by a few other people and disagreed with by others. It is not against the rules to have your opinion. I don't insult athletes on a regular basis and I would not disqualify myself on that basis. IT is interesting that you know that such behavior is appalling yet you regularly engage in it.

 

[Amit Mehta]

You make it sound like there are other players playing the style that she does who have done better in the history of table tennis.

You make it sound that her goal was to beat few CNT women player couple of times and settle.

 

[Bollwerk]

You make it sound that her goal was to beat few CNT women player couple of times and settle.

There are many players with a few wins against CNT women that are nowhere even close to Ito's career, so that's a pretty disingenuous way of trying to talk down her accomplishments.

 

[NextLevel]

You make it sound that her goal was to beat few CNT women player couple of times and settle.

You make it sound like there is someone else who has beaten more than a few CNT women whether they wanted to settle or not. Her goal was to be the best player she could be and in many ways she ha achievements to show for it (see last post). We can agree to disagree but she has been extremely successful even with her style limitations. Losing to the CNT is what everyone does, hopefully Harimoto or someone else will break through but you can look at the rankings and tell me who has Mima done that much worse than in facing the Chinese.

She would not have gotten the opportunity to play much outside of China if she was on the Chinese national team because of the competition she would have faced and the limits of her style. Think about the trouble Mu Zi had making the team and then think about the Zhang Ruis and Sun Mingyangs and He Zhuojas of the world.

It is extremely hard to beat the CNT. Mima dedicated a lot of time to innovating and looking for things to use to challenge them. When people were writing her off, she got a good draw and used it to get to the WTTC singles medal that was missing from her collection in 2025. Comments like yours were made about her back then as well. If she wants to continue the fight, she will do so. If she does not, I unlike you will not hold it against her. Look at Hayata's reward for fighting - 2 deuce in the 5th wins skating uphill against the ice. And she is only at the quarter finals stage lol. And some think she was lucky to win those matches. Not that I disagree since I am not certain she would win rematches but that doesn't change the actual results. And the possibility they might not reproducible without a healthy dose of fortune.

 

[zeio]

WS QF
Harimoto (6) 2-4 WMY (2) (-8, -2, 9, -5, 12, -6)
G1 63, 64 edge ball overruled by TTR, 66, 86, 811
G2 02, 12, 13 Harimoto served off the table, 23, 210 Harimoto served into the net, 211
That Yinhe ball...
G3 20, 23 slight net for WMY, 43, 45, 65, 66, 86, 87 TO for Harimoto, 97, 98, 108, 109, 119 WMY faulted for service angle 32.15. Something wrong with Harimoto's hip and MTO granted
G4 02, 12, 14, 34, 39, 49, 410, 510, 511
G5 02 Harimoto faulted for service angle 32.65, 12, 13, 33, 34, 74, 75, 85, 87, 97, 98, 108, 1010, 1110, 1111, 1211, 1212, 1412
G6 10, 11, 21, 23, 33, 35, 45, 46, 56, 58, 68, 611

 

[NextLevel]

Miwa doesnt look right. Is it really worth playing and hoping for a miracle when you feel that bad?

 

[NextLevel]

Wang Manyu is just hitting the forehand elbow ad infinitum.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

Miwa doesnt look right. Is it really worth playing and hoping for a miracle when you feel that bad?

yes

edit : NO

 

[Dr Evil]

Something looks wrong with Felix's forehand. No follow through. Maybe a shoulder or core issue.

Edit: Looks better in game 3, especially some full swings on serve receive. Still seems like he's braking earlier than usual.

 

[zeio]

You make it sound that her goal was to beat few CNT women player couple of times and settle.

Right.

Hirano has actually touched on that "mental trap" that she fell into after ATTC 2017, how she thought she couldn't lose to other foreign players after a few wins over CNT players. Her coach Zhang Cheng also said Hirano had lost her motivation and goal and how winning the World Cup 2016 and ATTC 2017 at such a young age was detrimental to her career.

Ito has also been "conditioned" by her mom since childhood (Ito said it in TV interviews several years back) to think she is the only one who can beat the CNT.

Hayata is currently very vocal about and focused on beating CNT players, rarely addressing her creeping losses against non-CNT players. Compared to Hirano, Nakazawa Rui and Zhang Cheng who went over the WS QF upset by SYB at Paris 2024, Hayata and Ishida never addressed the XD 1st-round upset (but he explained why once) at the hand of Ri Jong Sik/Kim Kum Yong that I warned about before the draw was out.

But unlike Ito and Hayata, Hirano has become much more mature and much less extreme in recent years, with a renewed passion for table tennis and a re-calibrated aim of learning from CNT players.

 

[TampaBayTableTennis]

late to the party...

Picks for upcoming matches: WYD, WCQ, CXT, LYJ, SYS, Moregard

WMY outcome expected, Felix making a big move here!

I'm waiting for these red Tibhar shirts to hit Aliexpress