Hong Kong Open 2018

[Junting]

I am just talking about what he "looks like', not playing style. ZLF doesn't use BH flick, simply because he uses short pimple for BH. Short pimples could cause great danger to opponent if he is not familiar with it. And I think LSS does not play an old style, but very aggressively. LSS is definitely much stronger than ZLF, but he still has trouble playing against short pimple.

Zhou LF is almost anti-fzd. He hardly uses any BH flick at all. There is zero aggressiveness against serves, too passive. LSS has the same weakness. That’s why there are so many third-ball attach winners. These two guys play such an old style you’d have thought they were from pre-zjk era. Man, I missed fzd playing

 

[JeffM]

I am quite amazed by the outcomes so far in this tournament. With so many second tier Chinese players, I would have thought at least 2 or more could make it further into the main draw, perhaps semi final.
However, due to their matchups, some have lost to foreigners, others have been eliminated by fellow teammates.
I was expecting Zhou Yu to do quite well, and the other ones who play in the super chinese league.
Now the only CHN player left is Zhao ZiHao (penholder).
The only HKG player left is Wong ChunTing, who is also a penholder.
The penholders will meet at quarter final if they remain undefeated, meaning the ultimate winner is still up for grab.

 

[Free bird]

LSS seems to me like a shakehand reincarnation of Ryu Seung Min. Speedy Gonzalez v 2.0, but with better backhand.

Indeed. His bh attack can be devastating but a bit too one dimensional. His weakness is in his handling of serves.

 

[Free bird]

I am just talking about what he "looks like', not playing style. ZLF doesn't use BH flick, simply because he uses short pimple for BH. Short pimples could cause great danger to opponent if he is not familiar with it. And I think LSS does not play an old style, but very aggressively. LSS is definitely much stronger than ZLF, but he still has trouble playing against short pimple.

Ok, Looks-wise, that makes sense.

talk about zlf, the rally he had with XX couple of years ago still makes me nostalgic about him.....
https://www.facebook.com/1besttt/videos/481652698705353/

 

[Sali]

Actually, I thought ZJK's service and receive were decent. Most of his receives are short and prevented Yoshimura from having a 3rd ball kill shot. On the other hand, Yoshimura had more trouble with ZJK's serves. Yoshimura lost many points just from service receive and ZJK was able to perform many 3rd ball attacks with BH. Overall, ZJK lost far fewer points from service and receives than Yoshimura, so I don't think that's the most critical failing.

ZJK also attempted to go down the line with his BH in game 2. But he miss on both occasions, so he gave up on that. I think after a long break, he's rusty on down the line shots, which is understandable.

I think ZJK's main problem is footwork and FH. He is still too slow to keep up with Yoshimura on longer rallies. His forehand is also weak. Although Yoshimura has a very strong FH, ZJK needs to be able to consistently beat him on FH topspin rallies. But that's not the case. ZJK won only 2 FH topspin rallies throughout the entire match. Many of this FH 3rd ball attacks are driven back by Yoshimura.

Overall, I think ZJK executed the correct strategy. He exploited Yoshimura's weaker BH. I noticed most ZJK's points are earned through BH rallies. He practically glued Yoshimura to the BH side of the table, so Yoshimura can't use his powerful FH as much.

Regarding serves I think we watched different match I did not count but yoshimura got many direct points from his serves and also got many 3rd ball occasions serving long to ZJK BH. Of course the same happened from the other side ZJK got also many points through serve, but finally ZJK serve mostly sidespin to make yoshimura flick the ball so ZJK got opportunity to attack fast.
If you look at short-short exchanges ZJK lost most of them finally giving long ball to yoshimura.
I do not think ZJK problem is his footwork, he took all balls with his FH during rallies and were never too late.
You are right that his FH is quite weak, he could have more power with that shot. But again if he goes more down the line, changing from spin to speed and the other wat would give yoshimura troubles.
Finally his game strategy besides playing to yoshimura BH was quite predictable.
Hope to see him in china open and check out his progress in that points.

 

[Garrison]

Gnanasekaran lead with 4+ points in 3 games and lost 0:4. That has to suck. I would love to see Filus winning HKG Open

 

[tropical]

Any ideas why ZJK's fan girls wearing masks? To hide from their BF's.

Anyway, I am not impressed at all with ZJK's performance. Lost in the 32nd round and called it a possible comeback? Be realistic people.

 

[usualsuspect]

Just watched Zhou Qihao play Jonathan Groth. I thought it would be a good match. Groth did quite well last year in some ITTF world tour events. Zhou Qihao is a good player too. I remember him beating Ma Long during the Marvelous 12 event. He is just slightly older than FZD; they are good friends and are from the same province. Anyways, I did not think this match would be so one-sided. Zhou Qihao easily beat Groth 4-0. In most topspin rallies, Zhou came out on top. Zhou Qihao is definitely worth watching. He is like Lin Gaoyuan, but with better forehand.

 

[Atas Newton]

Any ideas why ZJK's fan girls wearing masks? To hide from their BF's.


Anyway, I am not impressed at all with ZJK's performance. Lost in the 32nd round and called it a possible comeback? Be realistic people.

Being realistic includes having lower expectations until he finds his rhythm, no? Maharu Yoshimura is a good player and the match was super even. I'd say it was a pretty decent showing for a "retired" player.

 

[usualsuspect]

Indeed. His bh attack can be devastating but a bit too one dimensional. His weakness is in his handling of serves.

I agree. Lee Sangsu needs to improve his service receive. I could be wrong, but I always get the impression that his BH is stronger than his FH.

 

[usualsuspect]

Being realistic includes having lower expectations until he finds his rhythm, no? Maharu Yoshimura is a good player and the match was super even. I'd say it was a pretty decent showing for a "retired" player.

I agree with you completely. ZJK at his prime would destroy most players on FH topspin rallies. Probably only Ma Long could fight to a standstill on topspin rallies. Watching him lose almost all FH topspin rallies to Yoshimura (who has a powerful FH) is proof that ZJK needs more training and time to return to form. As long as ZJK doesn't give up, I think he still has a chance at 2020 Tokyo.

 

[JesperStef]

Results from Day 3 (24 May 2018):

Men's Singles

Round of 32:

[1] Wong Chun Ting 4:0 Daniel Habesohn (11:7, 13:11, 14:12, 12:10)
Jon Persson 4:0 Emmanuel Lebesson [15] (11:8, 11:3, 11:4, 11:9)
[11] Patrick Franziska 4:3 Jiang Tianyi (8:11, 12:14, 11:4, 11:9, 9:11, 11:8, 11:7)
Zhou Qihao 4:0 Jonathan Groth [7] (11:8, 12:10, 11:4, 12:10)

[6] Omar Assar 4:1 Gao Ning (11:7, 11:9, 11:9, 9:11, 12:10)
Zhang Jike 3:4 Maharu Yoshimura [9] (9:11, 11:8, 11:13, 15:13, 11:6, 8:11, 9:11)
[10] Bastian Steger 2:4 Cho Seungmin (11:7, 6:11, 11:13, 8:11, 12:10, 4:11)
Jang Woojin 4:0 Kenta Matsudaira [3] (11:6, 11:8, 11:7, 11:7)

[4] Marcos Freitas 4:1 Benedikt Duda (11:8, 4:11, 11:5, 11:8, 15:13)
Yukiya Uda 3:4 Quadri Aruna [13] (11:9, 5:11, 8:11, 11:6, 8:11, 11:9, 3:11)
[14] Jeong Sangeun 1:4 Lim Jonghoon (8:11, 8:11, 11:5, 4:11, 10:12)
Kim Donghyun 4:2 Chuang Chih-Yuan [5] (14:12, 8:11, 9:11, 12:10, 11:7, 11:6)

[8] Ruwen Filus 4:0 Sathiyan Gnanasekaran (11:8, 12:10, 12:10, 11:7)
Kazuhiro Yoshimura 4:1 Yuya Oshima [16] (11:4, 11:7, 12:10, 9:11, 16:14)
[12] Jin Ueda 4:3 Masaki Yoshida (12:10, 7:11, 8:11, 8:11, 11:9, 11:5, 13:11)
Zhu Linfeng 3:4 Lee Sangsu [2] (11:4, 4:11, 11:13, 12:10, 11:7, 13:15, 5:11)


Women's Singles

Round of 32:

[1] Kasumi Ishikawa 0:4 Lee Eunhye (6:11, 5:11, 9:11, 6:11)
Chen Ke 4:2 Miyu Kato [15] (11:2, 11:6, 10:12, 11:9, 9:11, 11:8)
[12] Lee Ho Ching 4:0 Zhang Mo (11:6, 11:3, 12:10, 11:4)
Honoka Hashimoto 1:4 Mima Ito [5] (6:11, 12:10, 7:11, 13:15, 3:11)

[8] Suh Hyowon 4:2 Elizabeta Samara (2:11, 11:6, 11:9, 11:8, 10:12, 11:4)
Wang Yidi 4:0 Hitomi Sato [9] (11:5, 11:9, 11:7, 11:7)
[16] Sofia Polcanova 4:2 Miyuu Kihara (11:8, 9:11, 6:11, 11:9, 11:9, 13:11)
Gu Yuting 1:4 Wang Manyu [3] (9:11, 11:9, 6:11, 8:11, 9:11)

[4] Miu Hirano 4:0 Choi Hyojoo (11:9, 11:8, 11:8, 12:10)
Zhang Rui 4:0 Hina Hayata [14] (11:5, 11:7, 11:7, 11:5)
[10] Chen Szu-Yu 4:0 Yoo Eunchong (11:9, 11:9, 14:12, 11:9)
Li Qian 2:4 Chen Xingtong [6] (6:11, 11:7, 8:11, 11:6, 10:12, 9:11)

[7] Liu Shiwen 4:0 Lee Zion (11:6, 11:7, 11:5, 11:6)
Yulia Prokhorova 0:4 Sun Yingsha [11] (8:11, 8:11, 2:11, 4:11)
[13] Doo Hoi Kem 1:4 He Zhuojia (6:11, 7:11, 6:11, 11:5, 5:11)
Miyu Nagasaki 3:4 Feng Tianwei [2] (11:7, 8:11, 6:11, 11:6, 9:11, 11:7, 6:11)

 

[Suga D]

Any ideas why ZJK's fan girls wearing masks? To hide from their BF's.

Anyway, I am not impressed at all with ZJK's performance. Lost in the 32nd round and called it a possible comeback? Be realistic people.

Well, to be perfectly honest, in my humble opinion, of course without offending anyone who thinks differently from my point of view, but also looking at this matter from a different perspective and without condemning anyone's view and by trying to make it objectified and by considering each and everyone's valid opinion i honestly believe that i completely forgot what i was going to say....

 

[NextLevel]

Guys, ZJK is 6 months to a year out from top form even with his current limitations. He is match rusty and you don't get that by just playing in practice halls. I honestly did not think he could look this good again after last year and the fact the CNT sent him gives me great confidence that they understand this a process. Let's revisit in 6 months. I just hope his injuries are truly in the past.

 

[ping fun]

Being realistic includes having lower expectations until he finds his rhythm, no? Maharu Yoshimura is a good player and the match was super even. I'd say it was a pretty decent showing for a "retired" player.

Yes that's the truth . To be honest i was afrsid he could lose to Ma Te . But he didnt and showed one of the best performances in this tournament . And agaist maharu his playing was acceptable . Lets give him time . He is a human too . He decided to comeback and he will .

 

[ping fun]

Guys, ZJK is 6 months to a year out from top form even with his current limitations. He is match rusty and you don't get that by just playing in practice halls. I honestly did not think he could look this good again after last year and the fact the CNT sent him gives me great confidence that they understand this a process. Let's revisit in 6 months. I just hope his injuries are truly in the past.

Really i expect members in this forum a comments like this but some members's view about him in this open is like they havent played tt or are not in this sport at all . Give him time . Even maharu himself told that he was away for a long time and effected his game . HE WAS 6 MONTH AWAY FROM THIS CRUCIAL FIGHTINGS . PLS ADD SOME LOGIC IN YOUR POSTS . I can remeber this comments about timo and samsonov too . But sth else happened . What is important is that he decided to comeback .

 

[ping fun]

 

[NextLevel]

Really i expect members in this forum a comments like this but some members's view about him in this open is like they havent played tt or are not in this sport at all . Give him time . Even maharu himself told that he was away for a long time and effected his game . HE WAS 6 MONTH AWAY FROM THIS CRUCIAL FIGHTINGS . PLS ADD SOME LOGIC IN YOUR POSTS . I can remeber this comments about timo and samsonov too . But sth else happened . What is important is that he decided to comeback .

It's almost like they just care about the score but they don't want to watch the matches and compare how he played in German Open last year to how he looks now. His athleticism is much better. He just has to get used to some balls coming back and a few other things like whether he ha healthy enough to fully build out his forehand footwork and trust his body. But after last year I was already shaking my head everytime I hear Zhang Jike. But the way he played here, if he gives me one more year like that, I am okay because that will get better.

 

[ttmonster]

I have to agree with you NL .. I watched all the matches just hoping to see that ZJK come through these matches without an injury ... I think CNT coaches will be happy that he played three matches including a chopper and did not get injured.

He obviously showed that he wants to fight ... for me he is still rusty ... also it seemed like there were specific instructions by which he played .. what i observed that he was regularly turning the corner on his backhand whenever he was down in points .. that was pretty obvious , I think he was doing it on purpose because the coaches told him to take risks ... again my guess ...
...obviously as NL said he is match rusty , you can see he is rushing in certain situations ... especially favoring certain patters with the third ball attack and expecting the ball to be somewhere before the opponent makes the decision .. but he got better as the matches progressed ... the last match was too close , he needs to get back the confidence to close out matches , I hoped he would already have it from the way he won against Ma Te but it was not to be ...

It's almost like they just care about the score but they don't want to watch the matches and compare how he played in German Open last year to how he looks now. His athleticism is much better. He just has to get used to some balls coming back and a few other things like whether he ha healthy enough to fully build out his forehand footwork and trust his body. But after last year I was already shaking my head everytime I hear Zhang Jike. But the way he played here, if he gives me one more year like that, I am okay because that will get better.

 

[phorkyas]

Anyone seen the JIANG Tianyi - Franziska match or knows a source? Cannot find it on the ittf page.

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