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Does Anyone Have Any Tips About Kitana Mirror Matches?

Vastly

Noob
I played against another good Kitana recently and he/she beat me but I feel like I am having trouble with this match. In past games mirrors never bothered me but this particular match keeps giving me trouble. Does anyone have any tips for the match-up? This was the match that I lost and the player is definitely good but I still feel like I'm not sure how to approach the match and it seems very obvious throughout the game when I re-watch it.

 

DrFolmer

AKA Uncle Kano
You leave a lot of dmg on the table, that's kinda why you lose - I'll elaborate on that later.

Even though downplayers will scream Kitana can't open people up - people always get caught by the second hit low in neutral and that happens a lot. The other guy throws out b1 (I think it is?), it whiffs but he lets the whole string rock, and you get hit by the low. It happens to me all the time. You need to watch out for that.

As for the damage left on the table. You connect and get away with a lot jump-in kicks. You connected with 2 in a row in the final round of the first game - I think you could have followed one of them up with a Fatal Blow (whereas your opponent uses his immediatly after and you lose the first game). And since his anti airs wasnt a threat, and given the fact you connect with a lot of jump-ins - maybe you could have done a jump-in punch instead and get a full combo? And be careful of which strings you decide to finish - you get full combo punished on more than a few occasions because you hit them out of the air, but the followups whiff leaving you vulnerable for a wakeup jab combo.

Maybe it's hard for Kitana I dont know, but having a plan with jump-ins definitely pays off. You see Liu Kangs do flying kicks or bicycle kicks when they hit with a jump kick, Jades do Nitro Kick, seen Jax do an air grab (with bf4) after succesful kicks. Like imagine if you had followed up with a flying forward thingy move you got? that's a lotta damage. And remember how close it was.

Don't be discouraged though. You seem to have the better fundamentals, your staggers worked well, you teched throws. It's primarily these little details that unfortunately add up. Leaving damage on the table, getting hit by too many fans, not managing meter correctly.

It's a bit hard to give match-up advice in a mirror match. It's really about getting the most out of every opportunity
 

Vastly

Noob
You leave a lot of dmg on the table, that's kinda why you lose - I'll elaborate on that later.

Even though downplayers will scream Kitana can't open people up - people always get caught by the second hit low in neutral and that happens a lot. The other guy throws out b1 (I think it is?), it whiffs but he lets the whole string rock, and you get hit by the low. It happens to me all the time. You need to watch out for that.

As for the damage left on the table. You connect and get away with a lot jump-in kicks. You connected with 2 in a row in the final round of the first game - I think you could have followed one of them up with a Fatal Blow (whereas your opponent uses his immediatly after and you lose the first game). And since his anti airs wasnt a threat, and given the fact you connect with a lot of jump-ins - maybe you could have done a jump-in punch instead and get a full combo? And be careful of which strings you decide to finish - you get full combo punished on more than a few occasions because you hit them out of the air, but the followups whiff leaving you vulnerable for a wakeup jab combo.

Maybe it's hard for Kitana I dont know, but having a plan with jump-ins definitely pays off. You see Liu Kangs do flying kicks or bicycle kicks when they hit with a jump kick, Jades do Nitro Kick, seen Jax do an air grab (with bf4) after succesful kicks. Like imagine if you had followed up with a flying forward thingy move you got? that's a lotta damage. And remember how close it was.

Don't be discouraged though. You seem to have the better fundamentals, your staggers worked well, you teched throws. It's primarily these little details that unfortunately add up. Leaving damage on the table, getting hit by too many fans, not managing meter correctly.

It's a bit hard to give match-up advice in a mirror match. It's really about getting the most out of every opportunity
Yea I guess I do leave a lot of damage on the table after the jump kicks now that you point that out.
 

VELL1

Noob
You guys did like 1 throw per match. In mk11 throws are the shit, your opponent has to be living in constant fear of a throw. You do your B321, do a throw right after...you do B14...do a throw. Do it a couple of times, they will eventually eat the B321+D2 or your B142.

Overall though you guys are evenly matched, you could have easily taken it.
 

Vastly

Noob
You guys did like 1 throw per match. In mk11 throws are the shit, your opponent has to be living in constant fear of a throw. You do your B321, do a throw right after...you do B14...do a throw. Do it a couple of times, they will eventually eat the B321+D2 or your B142.

Overall though you guys are evenly matched, you could have easily taken it.
Yea I think the problem is I've gotten used to LAN with the locals around here. We have a decently strong set of guys and 2 are sponsored, one by hybrid and the other by Nobal and they always seem to predict the throw and uppercut me for it. It's caused me to do it less than I used to.