Masterclass Defense | Kevin Sanjaya/ Marcus Fernaldi vs Yuta Watanabe/ Hiroyuki Endo [FullHD|1080p]

Who else miss Endo on court 😢😢

Watanabe has such a good awareness of where the gaps are.

You can really see the stark difference in attitude between the two pairs here. The Japanese unrelenting in their defense, both players trying their best to support each other, sometimes even going way into the area of their partner to cover them after a shot left them off-balance. Their play is very disciplined, never relaxing or slacking in both their attack and defense postures even when they are firmly in control of the rally/game. Meanwhile the body language of the minions tells you that there is discord between the two players. The frustrated look on Gideon's face each time he makes a mistake, a lot of times because he can't put the shuttle down while smashing many times from the rear, all the while Kevin is just chilling at the front waiting for Christmas. It also seems like Gideon may have been injured (feel free to fact-check me if I'm mistaken here) during this match as it really doesn't seem as though he is powering through his smashes. It really felt as if each indo player was playing solo with Gideon only playing back and Kevin only staying front for the most part (yes I know it's their preferred positions) but when Gideon has been smashing 7-10 times consecutively at the rear almost every other rally, Kevin has to help him at some point, and he barely did so. The two players felt like they were in a downward spiral of frustration both at their own performances and at each other, especially that 2nd game. The time when they got a lucky shot, like early part of 2nd game where Kevin gets a lucky shot on the tape, he doesn't even apologize out of courtesy, but instead just stares down the Japanese pair, displaying poor sportsmanship (as he often does).

i will remember this match all my life

It's very incredible if you look at that year. Gideon and Kevin was at their peak, getting so many gold medals, yet they only scored 3 points in the second round.

Any video with Endo in it I will surely be there. My favourite MD player of all time.

This is a game in which without commentary it's better

Endo has a cool personality.... He's a professional warrior in badminton world... His cool and calmness is similar to a Japanese Samurai❤.....

看蘇卡的憋屈臉就好開心 😊

I miss this era of MD

Super quality of the videos

I remember this match! Holding the prime minions at 3 points in a game and winning the match in 2 showed how good the Japan pair was!

the minnions counter

the Great Wall of Japan

Yuta is 🤯

渡辺ー遠藤のペアさびしいですね。

The Japanese pair lessened fighting for the front play in the second set since they found it hard to compete against Sanjaya. That tactic gave them advantage.

ga sampe hati liat match ini 😢 tp harus diakuin, endo watanabe disini solid bgt. ditambah, cuma endo watanabe yg bisa bikin skor 21-3 pdhl itu masa prime nya minion, rispek. tp sayang bgt, kita udh ga bisa liat mereka tanding lg di lapangan 😔

4:44 4:58 5:02

That was the price for an arrogant 👍