■ Wu Shu, reporter of this newspaper
Reality and prophecy are the opposite. Before the Sudirman Cup, Zhang Jun, chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association, once said, "In terms of the comprehensive ability to score points, the score order of the Chinese team is mixed doubles, women's doubles, women's singles, men's doubles, and men's singles. But this year's Su Cup, Guoyu participated in a total of six rounds of 26 matches, mixed doubles and women's singles both lost, men's doubles and men's singles became the key to turning the tide, especially in the semifinals of the 3-2 victory over Japan, it was the men's singles Shi Yuqi and the men's doubles pair Liu Yuchen/Ou Weiyi who withstood the pressure of falling behind to win the key points, which made Guoyu laugh to the end in this seven-hour hard battle, laying the foundation for the 13th cup win.
The more real "New Twin Towers" harvested growth
"This experience can blow for a lifetime!" "Even if the Chinese team loses in the final, it will be worth watching this ball!" In the early hours of Sunday, outside the Suzhou Olympic Sports Center, fans were still talking about the men's doubles match in the semifinals.
When China trailed Japan 1-2, the fourth men's doubles duo, Liu Yuchen/Ou Weiyi, trailed 16-20 in the tiebreaker. Seeing that Guoyu will not make it to the final, there was a sigh in the field.
At this time, many fans had already left the stadium depressed, but a burst of cheers suddenly broke out in the stadium, making them rush back again. With every slash of the "New Twin Towers", the stands returned with heaven-shaking cheers, 17-20, 18-20, 19-20, 20-20! The "New Twin Towers" saved four match points in a row, and almost everyone present stood up, the floor in the stadium was shaking, and the cheers seemed to overturn the entire stadium.
"When I chased 20 to 20, I actually didn't think there was a problem today. If I catch up like this, I feel like I can definitely take it. As the runner-up in the men's doubles at the Tokyo Olympics, Liu Yuchen has a wealth of experience in major competitions, "I use some small experience to interact with the audience and create some pressure on my opponents. I think they should have been very nervous in the atmosphere at the time. "The last ball fell, 22-20, Liu Yuchen threw away the racket, jumped out of the fence, and ran around the field. The victory turned the tide and pulled China back from the brink of missing the final at home.
It is not surprising to advance to the final, but what happened was that the men's doubles that saved Guoyu at the key moment was the men's doubles that were not favored before the match. With the retirement of old partner Lee Jun-hui, the past "Twin Towers" combination became history at the end of 2021. Liu Yuchen, a 1.93-meter Beijing guy, ushered in his new partner, 1.89 meter "Ou Ge" Ou Weiyi. Paired for more than a year, the pair often had surprises. In June last year, the "New Twin Towers" won the first title at the Super 6 Indonesia Open, breaking the two-and-a-half-year-long men's doubles championship drought in Guoyu. Since then, Australia has won the championship and reached the top of the year-end finals, and last year's triple crown has put the unknown new pair all the way to the top 1000 in the world.
But the "New Twin Towers" also have their success at times. In the quarterfinals of this year's All England Championship, they faced Indonesian "old demon" Ashan/Hendra, and the tiebreaker suddenly lost power after leading 17-13. While the fans strangled, they also put a question mark on the stability of the pair. "Actually, we can do this game when we are 16-20, why not in front? This is the part that we need to review and summarize carefully. Liu Yuchen was not immersed in joy, but seriously reflected in the interview. With this truthfulness, the men's doubles may be able to go further.
Shi Yuqi, who quietly changed, took on the heavy responsibility
"A lot of good balls? In fact, there are a lot of bad balls. "Easy? You go up and give it a try? In the face of reporters, 27-year-old Shi Yuqi is still the big boy who likes to joke, looking a little cynical, but he has quietly changed from two years ago. In this year's Su Cup, the men's singles group won all six matches. Except for Li Shifeng's battle in Denmark, Shi Yuqi won all five appearances. Netizens laughed that he changed from a "small stone" in the past to a "boulder" in this Su Cup.
Where you fall, get up. The team competition used to be where Shi Yuqi fell. In 2021, Chen Long gradually faded out of the field after winning silver at the Tokyo Olympics, and Shi Yuqi played in the Sudirman Cup and Thomas Cup as the number one men's singles in Guoyu. At the Su Cup, he swept Momota Kendou and made great achievements for Guoya to hold the cup again. However, a week later, in the Thomas Cup semifinals, Shi Yuqi was reversed by his opponent 20-22 in the first set, and in the second game, he collapsed mentally and lost his armor, and retired at 5-20. "Embarrassing responsibility" became Shi Yuqi's label for a while, and irrational behavior pushed him to the forefront and caused him to be punished by a ban that returned to the provincial team for rehabilitation. It was not until the World Championships 10 months later that Shi Yuqi returned to the arena.
At this year's Su Cup, when asked by reporters about the turmoil, Shi Yuqi was relieved, "Everything has a reason. Through these experiences, it has also helped me mentally and mentally. In consecutive days of interviews, he most often said: "If the coaching staff wants me to take it, I am willing to take on that responsibility." I am willing to take responsibility and play the results and status of the men's singles of the Chinese badminton team. With the courage and willingness to take responsibility, this may be the embodiment of Shi Yuqi's gradual maturity.
Zhang Jun, president of the Chinese Badminton Association, also specially affirmed the role of the men's team in this team competition after the game, "In the last Thomas Cup, because of the lack of the first men's singles Shi Yuqi, we were indeed slightly inferior in overall strength. From Shi Yuqi's comeback and recovery to the present, coupled with two pairs of excellent men's doubles players, the overall strength of our men's team is constantly improving. (Suzhou, May 5)