China Smash 2026, Beijing, 10/1-11

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Congratulations making the finals of a Grand Smash Super Sato ... what an amazing player!

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Investing into a pips racket was worth it.

 

[pongfugrasshopper]

If Sato ends up winning this tournament Japan needs to rethink the plans for LA28.

Too early to say but she could end up taking Hayata singles spot for LA28

I will be happy for whichever 3 make the team. But keep in mind the rankings that really matter for the Japanese Olympic hopefuls are the ones on January 3, 2028, which by then the ranking points this year will have expired. Hitomi will have challenges going forward as she is sure to meet in future tournaments top rivals such as Hina and Satsuki, both of whom are excellent against even the best chopper in the world.

But the day belongs to Hitomi (and I hope tomorrow too)! I am so happy for her success!

 

[NextLevel]

Choppers are the ones who love Zyre 03 the most. Sato's offense is a strong ad for it.

 

[NextLevel]

I will be happy for whichever 3 make the team. But keep in mind the rankings that really matter for the Japanese Olympic hopefuls are the ones on January 3, 2028, which by then the ranking points this year will have expired. Hitomi will have challenges going forward as she is sure to meet in future tournaments top rivals such as Hina and Satsuki, both of whom are excellent against even the best chopper in the world.

But the day belongs to Hitomi (and I hope tomorrow too)! I am so happy for her success!

Not just her teammates but we all know what usually happens when China puts your picture on the walls in the training hall...

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

surprised to see that Nagasaki, Odo and Diaz were playing in TLeague today... were they all planning to lose before SF ?

 

[NextLevel]

surprised to see that Nagasaki, Odo and Diaz were playing in TLeague today... were they all planning to lose before SF ?

You don't plan it like that - you adjust the further you go. Many players like Sato will rebook their tickets on a daily basis as their results change. If Sato had lost earlier too, she would have taken her flight home and been available to play. That's part of the reason they hold the medal ceremonies soon after the events so that the players are not forced to overstay and miss their flights or pay for more hotel stay.

 

[zeio]

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Un-effing-believable.

Why do you think Harimoto "looks down" on him but not LYJ, F. Lebrun and even Kallberg?

Back in 2021, I backed F. Lebrun as the future prospect of Europe and not Moregard for a reason. Moregard has been overly reliant on his short game (3rd/5th and 2nd/4th shots) to "snare" his opponents, a barrier if you will, that once nullified, would leave him exposed and vulnerable. If you keep track of his losses, you would see the same pattern.

 

[kapahoo]

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Un-effing-believable.

Really? I think thats just how it is.

Don't you have a player or two you always beat but they get a lot more over all wins than you? And players you just cant beat even though they lose to "everyone else", players you win against most of the time? Some just fit. Or not.

 

[Oliverpool]

Really? I think thats just how it is.

Don't you have a player or two you always beat but they get a lot more over all wins than you? And players you just cant beat even though they lose to "everyone else", players you win against most of the time? Some just fit. Or not.

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Agree. Sometimes a particular matchup is just poor for you for whatever reason that others can’t understand why. It’s like their super power shot hits your weakness and you just can’t dig your way out

 

[zeio]

这莫雷加德平时很聪明，怎么碰到台林就像死🐷一样了？ (Moregard is usually so sharp—how come he turns into a dead pig whenever he faces TaiLin?)
https://tieba.baidu.com/p/11092861874
总裁2323 缺点太明显了
IP属地:浙江来自Android客户端1楼2026-10-10 14:44回复
(The drawbacks are too obvious)

粟米肉粒饭0112 被牢云控麻了
IP属地:河北2楼2026-10-10 14:47回复
(Got completely pinpointed by Old Yun)

卷毛土匪 老☁只是没质量，又不是没脑子。。
老莫的脑子要看和谁比啊。。。
IP属地:广西来自Android客户端7楼2026-10-10 14:51收起回复
(Old Yun just lacks quality, it’s not like he lacks brains...
As for Old Mo's brains—well, that depends on who you're comparing him to...)

幻影肆千 线路技术都克制完了，侧身完全发挥不出来，林昀儒也就是正手弱一点，但是相持球中莫雷反手恰好也没有打穿的实力
IP属地:上海来自Android客户端11楼2026-10-10 14:54收起回复
(His shot placement and technique were completely neutralized, making it impossible to unleash his step-around. While Lin Yun-Ju’s FH is slightly weaker, Moregard simply lacked the power to punch through with his BH during rallies)

清湛又 林昀儒是关键分心态差，又不是技术和脑子不行
IP属地:湖南21楼2026-10-10 18:20回复
(Lin Yun-Ju's issue is his mindset on crucial points. It’s not that his technique or intelligence is lacking)

 

[NextLevel]

Why do you think Harimoto "looks down" on him but not LYJ, F. Lebrun and even Kallberg?

Back in 2021, I backed F. Lebrun as the future prospect of Europe and not Moregard for a reason. Moregard has been overly reliant on his short game (3rd/5th and 2nd/4th shots) to "snare" his opponents, a barrier if you will, that once nullified, would leave him exposed and vulnerable. If you keep track of his losses, you would see the same pattern.

This analysis is a bit backwards, in fact, the reason why LYJ bothers Truls is that he is even more reliant on short games strengths and weaknesses than Truls is, it is just that his strengths are attacks while Truls are pushes. The main reason why LYJ stably beats Truls is that LYJ can send the game to topspin and countertopspin before Truls is ready to take advantage on his terms.

When someone is "overly reliant" and has been more successful than those who are less reliant on the things he is overly reliant on, it is good form for you to honestly admit that you overestimated the impact of his weaknesses and understimated the impacts of his strengths. Since 2021, Truls has massively outperformed those who you have put above him in major events even if with Felix there are caveats around age etc.

LYJ still has no Olympic or WTTC singles medals despite actually being more reliant on short game strengths than Truls but just in a different way. Remember that LJH beat LYJ deuce innthe 7th and had Truls down 0-3 before a legendary Truls comeback that anyone who saw it will have etched in their memory for eternity.

Harimoto still has no Olympic or WTTC singles medals despite being in the same half of the draw as Truls both times Truls got his medals in WTTC. Again Harimoto lost to Togami with his good brand of TT while Truls with an injured shoulder beat the same Togami despite going down 0-2.

While there are still many years ahead for Harimoto and LYJ to make up this deficit, it is very bad form to continue to focus on these moments when your thesis pans out and ignore all the evidence that it is not a strong thesis. Even in this match today, there were a few points where if Truls had gotten a break the result could have been different. He struggled massively to keep his mindset with a lot of the breaks not going his way. Truls actually had ome success when they played earlier this year so it is clearly a matchup where id he gets some breaks he can get in. Today LYJ was just on fire and reading Truls perfectly.

 

[kindof99]

Why do you think Harimoto "looks down" on him but not LYJ, F. Lebrun and even Kallberg?

Back in 2021, I backed F. Lebrun as the future prospect of Europe and not Moregard for a reason. Moregard has been overly reliant on his short game (3rd/5th and 2nd/4th shots) to "snare" his opponents, a barrier if you will, that once nullified, would leave him exposed and vulnerable. If you keep track of his losses, you would see the same pattern.

Even if Truls retires now, his achievement still beats every current European players.

 

[kindof99]

This analysis is a bit backwards, in fact, the reason why LYJ bothers Turls is that he is even mkre reliant on short games strengths and weaknesses than Truls is, it is just that his strengths are atracks while Truls are pushes. The main reason why LYJ stably beats Truls is that LYJ can send the game to topspin and countertopspin before Truls is ready to take advantage on his terms.

When someone is "overly reliant" and has been more successful than those who are less reliant on the things he is overly reliant on, it is good form for you to honestly admit that you overestimated the impact of his weaknesses and understimated the weakneesses of his strengths. Since 2021, Truls has massively outperformed those who you have put above him in major events even if with Felix there are caveats around age etc.

LYJ still has no Olympic or WTTC singles medals despite actually being more reliant on short game strengths than Truls but just in a different way. Remember that LJH beat LYJ deuce innthe 7th and had Truls down 0-3 before a legendary Truls comeback that anyone who saw it will have etched in their memory for eternity.

Harimoto still has no Olympic or WTTC singles medals despite being in the same half of the draw as Truls both times Truls got his medals in WTTC. Again Harimoto lost to Togami with his good brand of TT while Truls with an injured shoulder beat the same Togami despite going down 0-2.

While there are still many years ahead for Harimoto and LYJ to make up this deficit, it is very bad form to continue to focus on these moments when your thesis pans out and ignore all the evidence that it is not a strong thesis. Even in this match today, there were a few points where if Truls had gotten a break the result could have been different. He struggled massively to keep his mindset with a lot of the breaks not going his way. Truls actually had ome success when they played earlier this year so it is clearly a matchup where id he gets some breaks he can get in. Today LYJ was just on fire and reading Truls perfectly.

Similar reason that one "looks down" his USA 2200 penhold club mate who can not loop on the forehand and can only push on the backhand, but can never beat him.

 

[kindof99]

Why is the venue empty on a Saturday? No one cares?

A WTT smash looked more empty than MLTT. It is not good. Without WCQ and SYS on the court, no way that WTT can sell a big crowd a couple hundred $ for a ticket.

 

[kindof99]

wow CXT is really good against choppers

wait, wait...

 

[kindof99]

Why is the venue empty on a Saturday? No one cares?

A couple teenager girls were arrested due to saying bad words to WH, This might be one reason

 

[zeio]

Even if Truls retires now, his achievement still beats every current European players.

Doesn't matter as that's not the point of contention here. Like for Hayata, who has the most medals now, Hirano and Ito are still regarded highly way more.

 

[kindof99]

Doesn't matter as that's not the point of contention here. Like for Hayata, who has the most medals now, Hirano and Ito are still regarded highly way more.

For competitive sports, medals and titles are most important measurements of achievement, and most objective. How others regard can be quite subjective.

 

[NetProphet]

Its not a farce. I think while i understand where you and @latej are coming from, I would like to briefly discuss the other sode of this. The umpire is a good umpire who usually gets that call right. He is actually well respected.

Jang Woojin went for the reverse pendulum. The reverse pendulum is probably the hardest serve to serve properly with a vertical toss. That I suspect biased the umpire more than anything else.

Finally, while the toss came out at 25 degrees, i keep having to remind people that 25 degrees is *not* vertical. Someone was complaining that the measurement came at 17 degrees but even 17 is not vertical. 30 degrees is just what had been enshrined into the rules as permissible and legal. What this has partly done is start the insanity of standards. I personally would have preferred a tighter vertical limit even if i struggle to serve with one because it would have killed a lot of shenanigans tied to serve hiding.

All that said i do agree it affected the flow of the match

I agree with what you've written here except where you say it's not farce.
For an umpire to incorrectly interrupt a high stakes match, at that point in the match, is imo, farcical. If it's that close then let it go! It's not like anyone is deriving an advantage on a 31° toss as opposed to a 25°.
If it's 40° then I get it but to have that interruption at the pinnacle of the sport is, for me, ridiculous.
But yes, the toss should be vertical or as close to as possible.
And angle of view makes a BIG difference when trying to determine if a toss is vertical or not, from one viewing angle it can look perfectly straight and from another its clear to see that it wasn't.
My point is that it is starting to effect matches, correct calls at 30.1° and incorrect calls at 20°. In this day and age to have that in professional sports I think that's farcical and I believe there are better solutions.
Namely, get rid of the angle toss thing altogether or check every service in real time. Let all points continue and if the service was illegal the umpire can intervene to stop the point, awarding it to the receiver. Or, if the point finishes quickly do not start the next one until the serve is confirmed to have been legit.
Open to opinion of course but I feel this would work far better.

 

[J-fed]

A WTT smash looked more empty than MLTT. It is not good. Without WCQ and SYS on the court, no way that WTT can sell a big crowd a couple hundred $ for a ticket.

Apparently it's due to commercialism.
Tough to work out what commercialism means.