Lin Dan – The Best Badminton Player Of His Generation

Featured Image: Antony Stanley

On the 4th July 2020 – Lin Dan – one of the greatest players the sport has known hung up his racket. With age creeping upon him, and the chance of competing at one final Olympic games seemingly just out of reach, Super Dan decided to leave the Chinese National Team after 20 years representing his country.

There’s little that Lin Dan didn’t achieve in his stellar career. Including two Olympic gold medals and five World Championship gold medals. Among his other achievements include gold medals at the Asian Games, Thomas and Sudirman cup, as well as the Superseries Finals. With 6 All England titles to add to this, he’s achieved more in his career than most players could ever dream of.

But what was it about him that made him so successful. Obviously we can say he was extremely talented. He almost embodies badminton. But what was it about him that made him the best. And that’s not to be taken likely given some of his opponents were amazing players in their own right. Here are a few select key aspects of his game that I think made him exceptional.

Lin Dan – Mentality

I personally believe that Lin Dan’s mentality is what kept him at the top of his game so long. And incidentally the biggest difference between him and his closest rival Lee Chong  Wei.

By far and away the strongest aspect of his mentality was his inner belief in himself. He was known as the bad boy of badminton. While his behaviour was not always sportsmanlike at the time, it was clear that the attitude was stemming from his belief that he should be winning every match. It was this belief that controlled his competitive drive. Ultimately making him hungry for title after title, to be better and better.

Later as he matured, and having won so many titles, this attitude became more refined. But he never lost his competitive drive as a result of being world number one or winning World and Olympic titles. In fact, I would hazard a guess that with the accolades to back him up, he grew even more confident. He knew that the pressure was much more on his opponents. They had to prove themselves against him, he was the benchmark of top-level badminton. There was no longer as much pressure on him but immense pressure on opponents.

One final point on mentality was his amazing ability not to panic or give up at any stage of a match. Lin Dan remained calm during high-pressure situations and just played his game. He wasn’t afraid to continue to play at his pace and forcing opponents to match him. Many other players in the same situation play safe so as to not make any unforced errors. Whereas Lin Dan continued to pressure opponents and take half-chances in order to win the rallies.

Speed And Attacking Play

For most of his early career, Lin Dan played an attacking game that blew me away. Watching the Olympic finals in 2008, his speed and tenacity around the court was spectacular. Lee Chong Wei couldn’t keep up at all. The pure explosiveness of Lin Dan meant he could attack literally everything.

But it wasn’t just his smash that was so lethal, it was the speed of the follow up to finish the rally. This commitment to following the shuttle in really set the tone of his attacking play. Combining this with his ability to produce excellent shot quality in his smashes, meant that he was able to create these opportunities often and with significant benefits.

His around the head smash was also devastating. Even at the top level, the backhand is considered a weakness in many players. This is not because it’s a genuine weakness in their technique. It’s because it’s limited in its application to put pressure on the opponent (unless your Taufik!). Lin Dan compensated for this by often compensating for his backhand with an around the head smash. Something which was a real strength because it meant opponents could no longer exploit this area in the same way as they could with other players.

Then lastly in this category, there was just his ability to move up a gear when he needed to. In so many matches you watch Lin Dan playing at a tempo which matches his opponents. Then suddenly he would be moving much faster. Injecting pace in both his movement and shots and then he’s 2 or 3 points ahead of his opponent in a flash. There are many players who were not able to keep up with this sudden change of pace and even fewer who could do this themselves.

Fitness

Of course, tying this all together is his fitness level. Lin Dan was a machine. His style of men’s singles was not seen at the time when he burst onto the stage but his pure strength, endurance and stamina were really the biggest gap between him and anyone else on the circuit at the time. Even later on, when he was a slower more tactical player, he still maintained his fitness levels, playing longer rallies and exploding when he needed to.

For me, the greatest example is in the Rio Semi-Finals against Lee Chong Wei. Lin Dan had changed his game by this period to be more controlled and calculated. However, Lee Chong Wei’s style hadn’t actually changed much, still playing at a similarly fast pace as previously in the 2012 finals. Yet Lin Dan was able to keep up with LCW and still continue to be explosive as needed. He pushed Lee Chong Wei all the way despite what many thought would be LCW’s opportunity to finally beat Lin Dan in an Olympic Games. He did, but it wasn’t easy.

Adaptability

While fast attacking play denoted his younger years, his twilight years were characterized by a slower tactical game. Prolonging rallies as he needed to in order to wait for that killer opportunity. There were still glimpses of his younger self but he played his matches with less explosiveness than previously.

It looks like Lin Dan was well aware of the toll of constant training and his playing style was having on his body. As he got older he adapted his game allowing him to continue to play at the highest level. While this game was a little slower, it didn’t stop him from achieving more titles with this method, including All England 2016, Malaysia Open 2017 and reaching the World Championship Finals in 2017 (eventually losing to Viktor Axelsen).

It wasn’t the fact that he lost speed, but the fact he gained so much experience that he was able to adapt his game in this way. This amazing ability for him to recognise the factors that would challenge him in later years and for him to overcome them shows great determination and passion.

Love For Badminton

Probably the biggest contributing factor to his longevity. This is not something that in itself made him an amazing player. But it’s his passion that drove him to continue on and to be the best. To want to still play, represent his country and win titles at the age of 37, even after he’d won basically everything there was to win showed his commitment to the sport.

This was clear in the words he used to signal the end of his career:

“In every jump smash lies my eagerness for victory. I have never considered hanging up the racket during my professional career which spanned four Olympics. I have devoted everything to the sport I love.” 

Retiring A Legend

Lin Dan may regrettably be hanging his racket up. But he can look back on a 20-year career and have no doubts about his achievements. He’s not just a legend in the badminton world, he is equally comparable to the likes of Messi, Ronaldo and Rodger Federer just as a few examples.

His success can be measured not just by the medals and trophies that adorn his home, but by the countless young badminton players all over the world inspired by his success and playing style. Many of whom had since faced him on the badminton court themselves!

Such was his reputation is how he will go down in history. When players stepped in front of him on the court, they realised they weren’t playing a man, they were playing a legend. And this is how he will be remembered forever in the badminton world.

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