Yamaguchi shows she is still the boss
Twenty seven is an interesting age to be: you are closer to your 30s than your teenage years and it is an age synonymous with the untimely ends of the rich and famous.
In badminton, it was the age that Olympic silver medallist He Bingjiao called time on her career just last year.
It is also the age of Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi but she showed she was not ready to give up her place in the women’s game on quarter-final Friday at the YONEX All England.
Yamaguchi beat compatriot Tomoka Miyazaki 26-24 21-16 in the last eight, using all of her experience to hold her nerve in an excruciatingly close first game and to then mount a comeback to clinch the second.
She did so against the bright young thing of the women’s singles discipline with Miyazaki only 18 and fresh from finishing high school but already the world no.8.
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But, as Miyazaki showed after the match, Yamaguchi is still the one to beat and to try to be like.
“There were tremendously long rallies in the game, so it was very hard,” the youngster said.
“She gained some points and I couldn’t really catch up with her. It was a tough experience but I would like to keep up with my good work for the next time.
“I joined her in a training camp for the first time, I was so gobsmacked by her speed and performance.
“It was so different from anybody else that I had ever seen so I was so surprised.
“I have played her three times now. Unlike other players, it’s always difficult to score a smash. Her patience is amazing. I’m always hoping I can be like her.”
Yamaguchi’s reward for asserting her dominance is a semi-final match-up with the number one seed An Se Young.
The Korean is yet to be beaten in 2025 but Yamaguchi did defeat her at the exact same stage of the All England last year.
Before she could even think of how to overcome An, Yamaguchi gave words of encouragement to her beaten opponent Miyazaki.
She said: “One of her strengths is the ability of her rallies, which is very unique I think for a Japanese player.
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“She’s very persistent and very patient. She’s able to stay focussed when she’s faced with very hard shots which is wonderful.
“She is good at attacking but at the same time, she remains cautious and composed which is another advantage.
“She has speed in her shots, at the same time she has good transitions in the variety of shots which leads to a very skilful attack.
“This is not something you can acquire from just practising, I think she’s gifted.”
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Photo courtesy of Badmintonphoto.
