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Yes those comments are partly modesty. But they are partly to reduce the pressure on himself. You can disagree but other coaches have pointed this out. When you respect your opponent, you don't panic when things are not going well like Ma Long used to. He is struggling with Harimoto, he respects Harimoto's game and expects a struggle. If he said "I am better than Harimoto, I should not lose to him", this creates panic when things don't go well. After the match he has go maintain the same attitude
I am speaking a bit from experience because I remember how I used to feel when in the USATT system I would lose some games to a player lower than myself by 200 pts. Then I stopped acting as if I must win because my ranking is higher. I just kept focusing on how well my opponent is playing and how well I am playing and it stopped putting pressure on me. And after the match, when I play a good shot to win. People tell me I played well, but I tell them I was fortunate and that my opponent really had me. Or that it was easier than I expected, my opponent should really have posed me more problems. It helps.with my mental stability so that good and bad times remain the same attitude wise. It sounds like modesty, and in some way it is, but it is really a way to make sure you don't pressure yourself unreasonably with stupid expectations that if they don't happen, you panic and lose. Keep the expectations reasonable and aligned with your best motivation and you will always bring your best possible game.
You may not agree but this is how i read Ma Long. You can read him differently.
Some nice mental coaching in the middle of a discussion where no one will change anybody’s way of thinking.