Paul said:

Ed

I think Gabby White and Jenny Wallwork have a chance of making it but they need to be fitter, stronger, more consistent.

Robertson needs to be sacked. Clarke is perhaps our best male but he needs to work on his fitness and lose some weight. Sadly, I don't think he will.

There's one or two younger players who may improve but I don't see them challenging the best on a regular basis.

Ouseph has improved a lot and I hope he will break into top 10. But, he still looks unfit at times and too slow. He also needs to sharpen his overall game, but I like him and hope he goes further.

Paul

I just watched Wallwork and White play against the Danish pair of Juhl / Pedersen last night at the Sudirman Cup (live telecast here in Asia), and yes like you mention they need to work on their fitness. Too many unforced errors on their part which let the Danes capitalize on very valuable points and win the match in straight sets. Ellis / Adcock looked very sharp in the MD match against Rasmussen / Conrad, and stretched the match to three games, but lost 22-20 in the rubber, which was a shame because I think they could have won it easily. They definitely had control of the match in the first set and things looked promising enough, but had to contend with attacks from the more experienced Rasmussen along with brilliant net play from Conrad. It was one of those matches that could have gone either way, and it just wasn't Ellis / Adcock's night. They have the potential to go far in MD. Great speed, power, and teamwork.

Cann looked lacklustre probably due to a cold (I see her constantly sniffing and blowing her nose during the breaks) so it was no wonder that Tine Baum was able to defeat her rather easily. Cann didn't display her usual strength and quickness, but to be honest, Baum is on a rebound in a way and enjoying good form. Cann has a peculiar overhead stroke; it almost looks likes she hits the shuttle almost too early but is however able to generate a lot of power for those baseline clears. She has great muscle definition and I read somewhere was a competitive swimmer as well. This is the first I have watched her play on live television and I hope she enjoys more success in the pro circuit.

It was interesting hearing comments from Gillian / Morten (Frost) during these games, especially during the China / Germany match, where Frost acknowledged that China's top MD pair of CY / FH are probably better than the current No. 1 from Denmark. Coming from a Dane that is saying something. And oh yes, Juliene Schenk defeated World No. 1 Wang as well, and she looked in total control during that match.

Cann just lost to Bae Youn-Joo in a rubber game (she won the first match). I was hoping for an upset there, but alas, not happening. 🙂