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Japan Open 2007 just recently came to an end. My favorite player, Tony Gunawan, won men double title. Some of the matches are already on YouTube. Here are the matches that I found. I made a playlist out of it, so you won’t have to click them seperatedly. Just click play all video on the right hand side and enjoy!

Badminton Japan Open 2007 - Koo Kien Kiet/Tan Boon Heong vs Luluk Hadiyanto/Alvent Yulianto

In this match, the video was shot by hand, so there is no commentator, and no score graphically shown. I must admit though that I like this angle much better than the high angle used in normal TV broadcast. It lets me see how high the bird is which make it more 3 dimension, than the high angle which makes it hard to judge the hight of the bird, hence feel more 2D. Recently, I’m impressed with how Kiet/Heong are playing. The win they got at All England over Cai Yun/Foo HaiFeng was very impressed that they dominated the chinese pair in every aspect of the game. Moreover, they played together so well in that match, that they can substitute each other seamlessly. They both commited to playing very fast, the new style in double that Tony Gunawan was talking about. Cai/Fu had no chance in that match. This match, however, was different. In Cai/Fu match, they can prey on Fu weak defense and get a lot of easy kills at the net. However, Alvent and Luluk defense was very strong. Even smashing point blank at the net couldn’t take them down, and they are force to smash a lot more from the back, rather than finishing the point at the net. This more like the old double style that Alvent and Luluk have been playing all their live, so they took the match. At the end of second set, Alvent and Luluk even won many points from driving contest which should be the strong point of Keit/Heong pair.

Badminton Japan Open 2007 - Lin Dan vs Lee Chong Wei

Lee Chong Wei did the unthinkable by defeating Lin Dan in this match and go on to win over Taufik Hidayat in the final. Very impressive indeed.

I went back to read Tony Gunawan website to check to see what’s new. I know that he was in World Championship this year, and was stopped in the quarter final, so I want to see what he has to say about it. Usually, he has some explanation on why/how he lost a game. A good player always reflect on his performance whether he win or lose a match to what he can improve upon. This time he provides some insight to the new trend in world class doubles game.

Here is a quote from his blog.

”

For me, the learning continues. Badminton games always evolve throughout the years. Certainly for men’s doubles now, one of the characteristics shared by many top pairs is the quickness in both hand and leg coordination to attack. It is not only about big smash anymore. It is the combination of fast smash, drive, defense, net, and counter-attack. From all four semifinalists this year, three are considered the new generation of men’s doubles. Only Lee Wan Wah and Choong Tan Fook have been around for more than ten years. Also, only Lee Wan Wah and Choong Tan Fook have different playing style. They depend mostly on their solid defense first and as soon as they place a great shot, then they launch their smashes.

The other three pairs (Kido/Setiawan, Lee/Jung, Ikeda/Sakamoto) - along with Koo/Tan and Cai/Fu start off each rally by attacking right away. All have quick reflexes to return the coming shots. They all play effectively and they waste no time; especially in the new rally system where all that matters is to collect as many points in the shortest amount of time possible. They rely on their fitness in jumping left and right to get to the shot right away. To defeat them, you either as fit (or fitter) than they are or you have an extremely solid defense to tired them out first.

“

There you have it. As he said, it’s not about setting up for big smash anymore. Today’s double is about fast pace all around. Whoever blink first, lose.