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Please upload final match of MA and Zhang on openload
From an interview after the final, ZJK said that the lost of first game to ML by 2 was the turning point and greatly affect the following 3 games. If he got it then he will not be as passive. After game one ML was playing really well. ZJK tried hard to chase from behind but it was very hard even to win one point. Also ZJK's back injury was triggered in the semi with Samsonov. He played a very good blocking game and ZJK's back suffered with big reaction.
About his favoritism by LGL, ZJK said everyone was being treated the same. About not getting the first Double Grand Slam, ZJK said that he felt he was playing much better than London in every games except final. He had fulfilled all his task before final so he has no regret. All players participated in the event no matter win or loss are great athletes.
About his future, ZJK said he is preparing himself for the next team competition and without much thinking about the future. Will this be his last Olympic? Probably but no firm answer for now.
No one should feel sad because we are about to see 4 Grand Slam Champions in one single Olympic playing in Team Competition with 2 Grand Slam Coaches watching. How can anyone beat that?
As I saw it,
I don't think Zhang Jike had ANY chance today to beat Ma Long. Like someone already said, Ma was prepared for everything. Nobody, no one, I repeat, no one could have beaten Ma Long today. His mindset was perfect, he wasn't nervous at all, and played to perfection. No matter what Jike tried, Ma Long always had the perfect answer. This was Ma Long's best performance of his life, and not even ZJK can deal with this kind of performance.
Dear ZJK fans, stop bitching about ZJK being injured or being bored, this is the OLYMPIC FINAL?! Do you really think that ZJK would lose on purpose? Do you think he gives a single **** about match fixing or Ma Long's GS? Sometimes, you just have to accept greatness, like Jike did in this match. Somewhere, halfway in this match, he acknowledged Ma Long's superiority today. And that is what everyone should do now. I was rooting for Jike the whole match, even at 10-4 in the third, but got over the fact that Ma was in a world of his own today. As should everyone here.
Let us all take a moment and send Ma Long our congratiulations. If anyone deserves it, it is him.
It would have been nice to see Jike win it, but I think Ma Long is a more deserving champion for this one. Jike was very disapointing in the final whereas Ma Long played fairly poorly (by his standards) during the rest of the competition but after the first game in the final stepped it up considerably.
Comparing the two players' performances over the last couple of years it's hard to see why ML didn't deserve to win this, as he has been so dominant in a way we haven't seen since the Wang Liqin days - and even then, WLQ had Ma Lin at his heels on a regular basis.
It was refreshing to see Zhang playing much better than for a long time in the rounds up to the final, just hope he can keep it up as he seems a shadow of his former self these days.