The japan 'race to 2020' is providing a bunch of interesting matches. I am glad that Ishikawa has thrown off her inhibitions and shown her best side against Hirano. Its difficult to tell which of Hirano or ishikawa is most likely to do the business in the olympic arena. If in the next few months Japan can consistently field four or five players who threaten China's elite, (ito, hirano, ishikawa,sato, hashimoto). Then China may start to worry. They would probably like to field Chen Meng, Wang Manyu and Sun yingsha. But memories of when Singapore prevailed over Ding Ning, and Liu Shewen, gives them a big problem imho. The experienced players have been defeated too often for comfort, but the young stars though brilliant may not have the steely resolve to handle the occasion.
As far as Hayata's recent performances are concerned, I have a feeling that the coaching staff have instructed her to use the next few tournaments to maximise her aggression with a take no prisoners approach. If she learns to combine her mobility and power to all out intensity with fewer errors, she may soon become clear owner of the number 2 spot on the japanese team, or at the very least she will be a great bet for the doubles.