[transcript]
There’s no doubt that 2019 Kento Momota was one of the greatest men’s singles badminton players ever, winning 11 titles in one season.
Unfortunately, however, this success was short-lived due to a life-changing accident as well as a pandemic that Momota was never able to truly rebound from.
This has opened opportunities for players like Viktor Axelsen to take the stage and win multiple Olympic gold medals.
With the 2024 Paris Olympics behind us, many have been wondering about not just how players could beat Axelsen, but also if this version of Axelsen could beat past players like Momota in their prime.
We dare say that it’s possible for current Axelsen to beat 2019 Momota, but it definitely isn’t easy for him.
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One of the biggest reasons that Axelsen had such a hard time against Momota was because nobody could neutralize Axelsen’s attack and extend the rally the way Momota could.
Axelsen was used to playing shorter rallies where he relied a lot on playing the net and using flat pushes to win off of smashing short lifts and clears.
The problem with doing this against Momota, however, is that he could easily neutralize Axelsen’s shots and force longer rallies.
Because Axelsen wasn’t prepared to play these long rallies, he was pressured to play crazy shots to try and force winners, which ultimately led to more mistakes.
Though, if you followed Axelsen throughout the years, you’ll know that he’s identified these issues and took initiatives to combat these weaknesses.
Between 2020 and 2021, most of his focus was on building stronger legs and improving his defense.
You can see that the work really paid off when you compare old Axelsen to prime Axelsen.
What you’ll notice is that current Axelsen is able to hold a lower center of gravity and remain much more stable compared to his previous years.
His split step timing and ability to change directions has also improved which gives Axelsen the confidence to push higher and play longer rallies.
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While the improvement in Axelsen’s strength and defense is paramount in helping him defeat Momota, it’s not enough.
But what does give current Axelsen a stronger fighting chance is his more developed anticipation skills.
What you’ll notice about prime Axelsen is that his positioning is far more aggressive toward covering certain shots.
For example, after blocking far on his backhand side, Axelsen often likes to switch his right leg back immediately to anticipate and attack a cross push.
This is extremely smart from Axelsen because it helps eliminate the time needed to turn his body and allows him to immediately shuffle, jump, and hit the cross pushes.
And in the case that Momota does block back, it’s not a big issue if Axelsen takes the shot a little late because he is opting to play a high push or lift anyway.
Another great positioning adjustment that Axelsen made was more closely hovering to certain sides of the court depending on where he lifted.
As a super tall player, it’s easy to get lazy and naturally position yourself in the middle of the court because you have the length to reach every shot. But just because you can reach the shuttle late doesn’t mean you should.
By playing percentages and attempting to predict the most likely shot on defense, Axelsen can often take the shuttle much earlier and turn defense into offense.
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Overall, however, we would still give the edge to prime Momota if a match between current Axelsen and prime Momota were to happen.
Momota just has the perfect skillset that makes it feel like he’s built to beat Axelsen. You can see why in the video linked here (point to where the recommended video should go) if you haven’t seen it already.
It will definitely be a closer game, though, and it would have been super exciting to see both players compete against each other at their primes.
What do you think? Do you think current Axelsen has a chance at beating prime Momota? Let us know in the comment section below.
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