JTTA: Selection System to be Revamped for Paris 2024

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

卓球・石川佳純が現役引退を電撃発表　４月のＷＴＴマカオ大会で区切り「やり切った思いが強く」「たくさんの夢を叶えられ幸せ」（デイリースポーツ） - Yahoo!ニュース

　卓球女子で五輪３大会出場の石川佳純（３０）＝全農＝が１日、自身のインスタグラムを更新し、現役引退を電撃発表した。４月に出場していたＷＴＴマカオ大会を最後に引退することを決めたといい、「大会ごとに『

news.yahoo.co.jp

Kasumi ISHIKAWA is officially retiring !!
She finally succumbed to Zeio's wishes.

The maid is gone... The CNT is now going to take beatings

 

[NextLevel]

卓球・石川佳純が現役引退を電撃発表　４月のＷＴＴマカオ大会で区切り「やり切った思いが強く」「たくさんの夢を叶えられ幸せ」（デイリースポーツ） - Yahoo!ニュース

　卓球女子で五輪３大会出場の石川佳純（３０）＝全農＝が１日、自身のインスタグラムを更新し、現役引退を電撃発表した。４月に出場していたＷＴＴマカオ大会を最後に引退することを決めたといい、「大会ごとに『

news.yahoo.co.jp

Kasumi ISHIKAWA is officially retiring !!
She finally succumbed to Zeio's wishes.

The maid is gone... The CNT is now going to take beatings

Did April Fool's Day come a month late or did she just see the handwriting on the wall that she wasn't going to make it since she can't play the WTTC?

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

she could still have made money playing in the T-League.
now she's gonna take care of her Insta and YT channel

https://www.youtube.com/@kasuminch

and of course, finding a husband, that shouldn't be too difficult for her, and I believe she'll stick to him more than Ai-chan...

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

BTW there is the 4th selection tournament for the Paris olympics going on next weekend in Japan. Points are doubled, stakes are getting higher

 

[Tony's Table Tennis]

she could still have made money playing in the T-League.
now she's gonna take care of her Insta and YT channel

https://www.youtube.com/@kasuminch

and of course, finding a husband, that shouldn't be too difficult for her, and I believe she'll stick to him more than Ai-chan...

I some times wondered, if Chiang went after Ishikawa and not Ai, would make a lot more sense.
Price with Princess after all

Even though Ishikawa was always secondary to Ai during the peak, to me Ishikawa still carried an important spot for table tennis in Japan. A true lady for the sport.

My wish is not for her to succumbed, but for her to continue doing good for the sport.

2 decades of playing this sport professionally is a great sacrifice and not many can understand it without going 300+ days a year, hardcore too, yet along non stop for 2 decades.

Ai is a CTTA doll, so she is general manager for WTT Japan despite loosing a lot of credibility with her infidelity. I would believe Ishikawa would do the job better for Japan, ethically and morally better for sure.

All the best

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

this WE is the 4th selection tournament towards the Paris Olympics. From now on, points are double those awarded in 2022 for this type of tournament.

there were 32 players on the start line in M and W
when you look at the point system, its very painful for a player to be injured and not be able to defend their chances. a defeat in R1 or R2 is also very painful.

and it seems to be the case for such high profile players like KIHARA, KATO, HASHIMOTO for girls or SHINOZUKA for mens.

---
in W, Miwa HARIMOTO won against Miu HIRANO in QF. ITO lost to NAGASAKI in R2, and NAGASAKI lost in QF to HAYATA.

in M, YOSHIMURA bros both lost i R1.

---
5-8, SF, and F tomorrow

M SF:
HARIMOTO - YOSHIYAMA
TOGAMI - TANAKA

W SF:
HARIMOTO - SATO
HAYATA - MORI

Tomokazu HARIMOTO and Hina HAYATA once again are confirming their leads in the standings.
but its very open for the second ticket both in M and W.

I'm sensing Miwa could surprise everyone. There are still many tournaments to come and points to be earned, if she can get this one, suddenly she'll be in the shortlist of players able to get the Paris ticket.

トーナメント表（ドロー）女子シングルス｜卓球 第4回パリ五輪日本代表選考会｜テレビ東京卓球NEWS：テレビ東京

女子シングルス トーナメント表（ドロー）ページです。第4回パリ五輪日本代表選考会の大会日程、試合結果、試合映像などを随時更新。テレビ東京の大会情報HPです。

www.tv-tokyo.co.jp

EDIT: i made a mistake, KIHARA didn't forfeit. She lost in R2 to a young player named I (who lost to SATO in QF)
neither did HASHIMOTO, who lost to SHIBATA in R2

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

HAYATA got rather lucky to go past YOKOI, the junior champ (who beated ITO at the National Championships in January)

 

[fore.n.back]

HAYATA got rather lucky to go past YOKOI, the junior champ (who beated ITO at the National Championships in January)

I hope Yokoi will get more chances to compete internationally, she has immense potential. But tbh, Hayata saved 8 match points in the final set is no lucky, her mentality is first class.

HARIMOTO - YOSHIYAMA

Yoshiyama is like a kryptonite to Uda, I remembered the last time they met in T League cup last year Uda also lost badly

 

[pongfugrasshopper]

I hope Yokoi will get more chances to compete internationally, she has immense potential. But tbh, Hayata saved 8 match points in the final set is no lucky, her mentality is first class.


Yoshiyama is like a kryptonite to Uda, I remembered the last time they met in T League cup last year Uda also lost badly

If Yokoi continues to improve like this, she will be a serious candidate for the 2028 Olympics. She is solid all around and has one of, if not the best backhand loops of the Japanese women when it's on.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

Miwa needed more than 2 games to adapt but she found the way from g3 against Sato. The expedite rule was invoked at the end of g4. In that game, There were one 66 shot rally for the first point and another 62 which was interrupted by an incoming ball !!
it’s
It didn’t affect much Miwa who earnt for herself the right to defy the champ Hayata.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

both HARIMOTO defeated in the finals
TOGAMI won the finals 4-3 against Tomokazu while HAYATA won 4-2 against his sister Miwa

Here are the updated standings after this event.

MEN

1 HARIMOTO Tomokazu 323.5

2 TOGAMI 250

3 YOSHIYAMA 172

4 SHINOZUKA 168

5 TANAKA 160

6 SONE 145

7 OIKAWA 124.5

8 YOSHIMURA Maharu 118

----

WOMEN

1 HAYATA 332.5

2 HIRANO 207

3 KIHARA 182

4 SATO 175

5 HARIMOTO Miwa 160.5

6 NAGASAKI 158

7 ITO 155.5

8 SHIBATA 137

 

[driversbeat]

There's really nothing much separating the girls from positions 2-8. A win and an early knockout could send them shooting up or tumbling down the rankings either way. I must say that Ito is just a mere shadow of her former self. Looking at the way she played against Nagasaki in 2021 vs now, it's apparent that her shots no longer have conviction. IMO this is largely due to her over-reliance on tricky services and returns which the entire world has already figured out by now. There were so many long serves that Nagasaki just ripped for a winner or forced Ito into playing passive.

On the other hand, Hirano showed that consistency is enough to keep you afloat in the rankings (best 8 in All-Japan, 5th place in 4th selection tournament) when everyone else is fumbling one way or another. Still waiting for that major breakthrough, but overall she feels more stable than Ito and Kihara.

Maybe it's just the TT world regaining balance again. It took awhile for inverted players to figure out how to play against pips with the new ball, but at the end of the day playing with spin is still the safer shot with a higher upper ceiling. Honestly with the way things are going I wouldn't mind a team consisting of Hayata, Harimoto, and Hirano playing at WTTC 2024 or even the Olympics.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

There's really nothing much separating the girls from positions 2-8. A win and an early knockout could send them shooting up or tumbling down the rankings either way. I must say that Ito is just a mere shadow of her former self. Looking at the way she played against Nagasaki in 2021 vs now, it's apparent that her shots no longer have conviction. IMO this is largely due to her over-reliance on tricky services and returns which the entire world has already figured out by now. There were so many long serves that Nagasaki just ripped for a winner or forced Ito into playing passive.

On the other hand, Hirano showed that consistency is enough to keep you afloat in the rankings (best 8 in All-Japan, 5th place in 4th selection tournament) when everyone else is fumbling one way or another. Still waiting for that major breakthrough, but overall she feels more stable than Ito and Kihara.

Maybe it's just the TT world regaining balance again. It took awhile for inverted players to figure out how to play against pips with the new ball, but at the end of the day playing with spin is still the safer shot with a higher upper ceiling. Honestly with the way things are going I wouldn't mind a team consisting of Hayata, Harimoto, and Hirano playing at WTTC 2024 or even the Olympics.

in her post match interview, ITO said her body is only at 30-40%. She's not "injured" as to say she can't play TT at all, but she is hurting here and there (at the hips mainly she said iirc). She said confidently / arrogantly that if she had been 100% she would have beaten Nagasaki easily. She also said that with her current condition she would have stood no chance at all against Hayata anyway.

Of course the World champs are happening very soon and she hopes to recover by then.

Ito was upset, and she was probably crying b4 the interview, but Kihara seemed even more shattered during her post match interview. She said she had lost too many 1st round matches on the international scene recently and that her confidence was very low.

 

[driversbeat]

in her post match interview, ITO said her body is only at 30-40%. She's not "injured" as to say she can't play TT at all, but she is hurting here and there (at the hips mainly she said iirc). She said confidently / arrogantly that if she had been 100% she would have beaten Nagasaki easily. She also said that with her current condition she would have stood no chance at all against Hayata anyway.

Of course the World champs are happening very soon and she hopes to recover by then.

Ito was upset, and she was probably crying b4 the interview, but Kihara seemed even more shattered during her post match interview. She said she had lost too many 1st round matches on the international scene recently and that her confidence was very low.

That's her main problem. She still positions herself above her peers and international competitors even though it's apparent that the rest of the world has caught up. The Chinese always place themselves in the challengers position when competiting against main threats, even though they are clearly technically superior. Sun Yingsha is a prime example of this. She still says that she has a lot to learn from Ito to this day. Unless Ito can break out of this mentality and her Olympic glory days, I'm not too optimistic about her chances at returning to the top.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

Only a TLeague result but Sakura YOKOI who took out Mima ITO at the national champs in January just beated Miu HIRANO 3-1 and then Miwa HARIMOTO 1-0 (victory match)

【Tリーグ】横井咲桜が2勝、日本ペイントがKA神奈川の連勝止める　日本生命は九州に勝利 | 卓球メディア｜Rallys（ラリーズ）

11月4日、ノジマTリーグ2023-2024シーズンの3試合が行われた。

rallys.online

Yet another young player from Japan to watch.

 

[fore.n.back]

Only a TLeague result but Sakura YOKOI who took out Mima ITO at the national champs in January just beated Miu HIRANO 3-1 and then Miwa HARIMOTO 1-0 (victory match)

【Tリーグ】横井咲桜が2勝、日本ペイントがKA神奈川の連勝止める　日本生命は九州に勝利 | 卓球メディア｜Rallys（ラリーズ）

11月4日、ノジマTリーグ2023-2024シーズンの3試合が行われた。

rallys.online

Yet another young player from Japan to watch.

I've just watched the highlights, she has solid fundamentals, I hope to see her competing for LA 2026

 

[zeio]

Big shout out to Takkyu_wa_inochi for the updates and the several posts above, I just ran into Hirano's comment after winning Nojima Cup 2023, which is the most interesting one that I happened to miss. 5 months later, it is pretty clear the mindset is what sets Hirano and Ito apart in this cycle.

【卓球】平野美宇に復活の兆し　日本協会の宮崎専務理事「再びチャレンジャー精神になってきた」
https://www.tokyo-sports.co.jp/articles/-/266940

　１７年アジア選手権では陳夢ら中国の３選手を下して優勝。世界に名をとどろかせた一方で、２１年東京五輪の選考レースは土壇場でシングルス代表の座を逃した。平野は「１７年にかなり結果が出て、こんなに結果が出ているのに五輪に行けなかったらもったいないなという気持ちがあった」と受け身になっていた当時を振り返る。

　しかし、今は違う。平野は「日本のレベル的にも自分の位置を考えた時に、挑戦者だなと思うことが多い。向かっていく立場だと思っている」ときっぱり。日本協会の宮崎義仁専務理事（６４）も「今の平野選手の卓球は悩んでいない。１７年の時に少しやりきった感があったけど、東京で苦しい思いをしたからこそ、過去の栄光の重荷がとれたのでは。再びチャレンジャー精神になってきている」と指摘した。

At the ATTC 2017, she defeated Chen Meng and 2 other players from China to win the championship. Although she became famous around the world, she missed out on the singles representative spot at the last minute in the selection race for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Hirano looks back on those days when she was passive, saying, "In 2017, I achieved notable results, and I felt it was a shame that I couldn't go to the Olympics even with such results."

But it's different now. Hirano said directly, "When I think about my position in terms of Japan's level, I often feel like I'm a challenger. I think that is the position going toward." Yoshihito Miyazaki, 64, executive director of the Japan Association, also said, "The table tennis of the current Hirano is free of worries. Although there was a slight feeling that she had done it in 2017, it's precisely because of the painful memories of Tokyo, that she shed the burden of past glory, and picked up the challenger spirit again."

 

[pongfugrasshopper]

There is a strong case to be made for Miyuu Kihara as 3rd player on Japan's Olympic team. I know I've mentioned in the past that Miwa Harimoto has an excellent case as the 3rd player, but the more I think about it, why not Miyuu? It was the Miwa/Kihara duo that beat SYS/WMY at the 2022 (that took place in 2023) Asian Games. Kihara also paired well with her bestie Miyu Nagasaki coming close to defeating WMY/CM at the 2023 Asian Championships so Kihara has a history of successful doubles partnerships. Additionally, if needed for singles in teams, she trounced WYD 3-0 (7,7,4) at 2023 WTT Star Contender Lanzhou. If Miwa had done that we'd all be singing her praises, but there's near silence when Miyuu actually did it. And let's not forget, Miyuu is actually ahead of Miwa in the 2024 Paris points race. Also, Miyuu beat Miwa at the World Youth Championships. And she also beat her in a domestic tournament ... I can't remember which one off the top of my head. Miwa will definitely be at LA 2028 and probably in singles. I think Miyuu Kihara is deserving of the 3rd spot for Paris 2024.

 

[driversbeat]

There is a strong case to be made for Miyuu Kihara as 3rd player on Japan's Olympic team. I know I've mentioned in the past that Miwa Harimoto has an excellent case as the 3rd player, but the more I think about it, why not Miyuu? It was the Miwa/Kihara duo that beat SYS/WMY at the 2022 (that took place in 2023) Asian Games. Kihara also paired well with her bestie Miyu Nagasaki coming close to defeating WMY/CM at the 2023 Asian Championships so Kihara has a history of successful doubles partnerships. Additionally, if needed for singles in teams, she trounced WYD 3-0 (7,7,4) at 2023 WTT Star Contender Lanzhou. If Miwa had done that we'd all be singing her praises, but there's near silence when Miyuu actually did it. And let's not forget, Miyuu is actually ahead of Miwa in the 2024 Paris points race. Also, Miyuu beat Miwa at the World Youth Championships. And she also beat her in a domestic tournament ... I can't remember which one off the top of my head. Miwa will definitely be at LA 2028 and probably in singles. I think Miyuu Kihara is deserving of the 3rd spot for Paris 2024.

Lack of enthusiasm over Kihara's WYD win was probably because many attributed it to the latter being in poor form after losing to JNT members so many times this year (by Chinese standards). But credit where credit is due, IMO Kihara has redeemed herself at Contender Taiyuan with two wins over CNT. I've felt that Kihara was technically superior to Ito ever since she consistently outrallied her senpai at the 2022 Asian Games selection tournament.

On a related note, I suppose this also makes the case for using Harimoto/Kihara for singles + doubles with Hirano in the upcoming mixed team event. It's the perfect opportunity to test their singles ability and compatibility with Hirano under a team context, although such a scenario would cleanly knock Hirano out of the WTT Finals race. Tbh I'm still fearful that JNT will fix Hayata as the de-facto singles player and completely waste an opportunity to test out combinations given their track record.

 

[Tony's Table Tennis]

Tbh I'm still fearful that JNT will fix Hayata as the de-facto singles player and completely waste an opportunity to test out combinations given their track record.

It is very normal where your best player, on merit, is giving the de-facto singles player position.

if you don't do that and your "test" fails, can you imagine the amount of backlash too, including from your best player.