Disappointed to see that we didn’t give Italy much of a challenge, while Poland pushed Serbia to 5 and to the very end!
With all said and done, I think we are all aligned on the fact that this NT season has been one of bewilderment, frustration and disappointment.
Bewildered by Cai’s selection to the NT, frustrated by his selections on court (Diao, anyone?), and disappointment in the lack of improvement in some players.
I think that the middles ultimately were too unstable - attacking-wise they were acceptable, but the blocking has been a huge question mark. At her current state, Yuan is not a worthy successor to the Great Wall. No one really is at the moment. Perhaps the pressure of being Captain got to her, because I think she ultimately fell short in both tasks.
On the bright side, I look forward to Cai’s resignation - for China to end up World No. 5, languishing at 7th or 8th place in major tournaments even while having tremendous players like LYY, shows how much Cai has failed in coaching the team. I genuinely think that we could have brought Wu, Zhuang, WYF and ended up in the same position, so why not give the young players the opportunity?
All his decisions have been wrong. He has been too arrogant and stubborn to make changes, only waiting to the last minute when the rice has turned to porridge…
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Before WCH I was thinking about why LYY hasn’t been able to carry the team even while having such tremendous talents. At 22, why do we call her 妹妹 (“little sister”), worry about her fragility on court, when at 22 Zhu was already an Olympic Champion and a year off from being the team captain? Of course, not everyone is meant to be a leader, and perhaps that is the missing piece for Team China. They didn’t have someone who they could look to, rely on to perform and boost their morale when things weren’t going their way. We’ve been spoiled by Zhu, and without her it is clear that the team is merely a 7/8th placed team. Talent is there, but leadership on and off court isn’t.
Questions on my mind:
1. Will Ding retire?
2. Will CVA bite the bullet and hire a foreigner to coach?
3. When will Zhu start training with the NT again? Will she be a part of VNL 2023?
4. What if CVA doesn’t fire Cai? Will WYL, JY and Diao be good enough to get China out of the pool stages in Paris?
5. What if Gong never fully recovers?
