Job done, hit some brilliant winners...but I didn't see anything to suggest Ito Mima is ready to challenge elite Chinese opponents at the moment. Again, no coach; over-pressing; throwing away a set. I wish she had a coach in the corner; Matsuzaki was a calming presence, good for her emotionally, even if she ignored the advice. The current situation suggests too much ego. 3 years ago, I'd have been confident about the next match, but now Kuai Man is a potential banana skin.
It's easy to critize her, now that her results drop, but I'm not seeing any female player, Japanese or not, challenging the elite Chinese. Her over-pressing style is the ONLY way that she can win, given that her size limits her reach and power to play the traditional women style. Her results dropping is most probably because people have learned and adapted. Until Japanese coaches can teach another girl to give the Chinese trouble, critizing Ito is just weird. Sure, the Chinese are dominating her, but if asked, they'd probably say Ito is still the last player they want to play against.
@@nhatnamtrinh5017 Well, in the same week that Hirano beats Sun Yingha using placement, control, and soft spin shots I question whether maximum speed, maximum agression is the only way for Ito, or any smaller woman to play. She used to play with more variety. She used to rally more. Kuai Man will be a useful indicator.
@@robertrowles5450 If you use a single game to justify things, then anything goes. Szocs Bernadette beat Chen Meng last year, but…. Until there’s a Japanese girl, or any non-Chinese girl, who can surpass Ito, criticizing her is just too convenient. Instead, one should praise a small girl with limited reach and power for what she’s done.
Job done, hit some brilliant winners...but I didn't see anything to suggest Ito Mima is ready to challenge elite Chinese opponents at the moment. Again, no coach; over-pressing; throwing away a set. I wish she had a coach in the corner; Matsuzaki was a calming presence, good for her emotionally, even if she ignored the advice. The current situation suggests too much ego. 3 years ago, I'd have been confident about the next match, but now Kuai Man is a potential banana skin.
It's easy to critize her, now that her results drop, but I'm not seeing any female player, Japanese or not, challenging the elite Chinese. Her over-pressing style is the ONLY way that she can win, given that her size limits her reach and power to play the traditional women style. Her results dropping is most probably because people have learned and adapted. Until Japanese coaches can teach another girl to give the Chinese trouble, critizing Ito is just weird. Sure, the Chinese are dominating her, but if asked, they'd probably say Ito is still the last player they want to play against.
@@nhatnamtrinh5017 Well, in the same week that Hirano beats Sun Yingha using placement, control, and soft spin shots I question whether maximum speed, maximum agression is the only way for Ito, or any smaller woman to play. She used to play with more variety. She used to rally more. Kuai Man will be a useful indicator.
@@robertrowles5450 If you use a single game to justify things, then anything goes. Szocs Bernadette beat Chen Meng last year, but…. Until there’s a Japanese girl, or any non-Chinese girl, who can surpass Ito, criticizing her is just too convenient. Instead, one should praise a small girl with limited reach and power for what she’s done.
@@nhatnamtrinh5017 OK, let's agree to differ. And hope she beats Kuai Man.