Day 8 Predictions 16/8/08

Lu Lan vs. Maria Kristin Yulianti
Maria has had a dream run this tournament, and now she faces the consistent Lu Lan in a bronze medal match. I think Lu holds the upper hand in this match, but who knows, Maria could spring another one of the many surprises she has sprung all throughout this tournament.

Jonas Rasmussen/Lars Paaske vs. Hwang Ji Man/Lee Jae Jin
I think the Danes should win this on. Mainly because I have been more impressed with their play compared to the Koreans. The Koreans yesterday were demolished by the Chinese, while the Danes, while simmilarly demolished, performed much better. If it goes to 3 sets, the Koreans will hold the fitness upper hand, but I have a feeling the third set won't come.

Xie Xingfang vs. Zhang Ning
Seed 1 versus seed 2 in the finals. What a match this will be, and what enormous stakes there. For Zhang Ning, the prospect of defending her title would be a spectacular thing to do, while Xie would want her first Olympic medal to be a Gold. I think Xie holds the thinnest of upper hands, but Zhang has been also very very impressive. Hard to say really, but one things for certain, this will be a hell of a finals.

Chen Jin vs. Lee Hyun Il
Chen Jin expectedly lost yesterday. Hyun Il on the other hand, put up a very tough fight against Chong Wei. I think Hyun Il holds the upper hand in this match, but then again, it is very hard to say who wins what in the Olympics. Chen Jin's power and Hyun Il's precision will come into extreme scrutiny, and don't expect the crowd to go easy on Hyun Il.

Markis Kido/Hendra Setiawan vs. Cai Yun/Fu Haifeng
This would also be another hell of a match. The crowd will be behind Cai and Fu, while Markis and Hendra's explosiveness will help them a lot. Both have been very very impressive, and really, it is very hard to say who would win. Definitely will go into 3 sets, with the Indonesians going in with the slight edge.