Fan Zhendong's twists and turns show the "big picture", Sun Yingsha continues to lead the way, preparing for the Paris Olympics
With the conclusion of the WTT Chongqing Championship recently, the Chinese table tennis team also concluded its last international event before the Paris Olympics. Fan Zhendong and Sun Yingsha won the men's and women's singles championships respectively. As the number one player in the women's world, Sun Yingsha deserves her title. Fan Zhendong, on the other hand, won a battle of confidence after experiencing an 11-month "champion drought" in singles.
Both finals represent the highest level of table tennis in the world today. In the women's singles final, Sun Yingsha and Wang Manyu had met 21 times in international competitions before, with Sun Yingsha taking the advantage with 13 wins. In the final, the two were tied for the first six games. In the decisive game, Sun Yingsha had the advantage, but Wang Manyu clung to the score, and the two sides were deadlocked at 9. At the critical moment, the world number one scored two points in a row to seal the victory 11-9.
After the game, Sun Yingsha expressed her respect for her opponent, "I am very happy to win this game, and it is also an affirmation for myself. In fact, with this score against Manyu, I think we are both winners. In the seventh game When the score reached 9-9, I was serving the ball myself, but in fact both sides tried their best at that time and gave their best for every point.”
Summarizing this championship trip, Sun Yingsha said: "I am quite satisfied with the results and the process was good. This is the last international competition before the Olympics. I cherish it very much and it is worth summarizing."
At the Paris Olympics, 23-year-old Sun Yingsha will participate in the women's team, women's singles and mixed doubles competitions. She has an arduous task.
Excellent technical, tactical and psychological qualities make Sun Yingsha the youngest Chinese female table tennis leader. Since July 2022, Sun Yingsha has been at the top of the women's singles world rankings. 2023 will be a harvest year for Sun Yingsha. This year, she participated in multiple WTT series events and won the women's singles championship, which brought her more world ranking points. The growth of Sun Yingsha reflects from another aspect the vision and courage of the National Table Tennis Team in recruiting young players.
At the Tokyo Olympics, the then 21-year-old Sun Yingsha achieved overtaking in a corner and was entrusted with an important task when she participated in the Olympics for the first time, competing in the women's team and women's singles events. This risky move was precisely to cope with the fighting impact of the host Japanese team. In the Paris Olympics, Sun Yingsha will face greater challenges.
If Sun Yingsha's preparations for the Olympics are progressive, Fan Zhendong's preparations are full of twists and turns. From 2020 to 2023, Fan Zhendong had been ranked No. 1 in the men's singles world for a long time, but since July 2023, he has suffered a "champion drought" in singles. As the championship points from several previous competitions have expired, Fan Zhendong's world ranking before the Chongqing Championship has slipped to fourth place.
In this Chongqing Championship, Fan Zhendong regained his strength and lost only one game in total against three main Olympic opponents - Li Shangzhu, Calderano, and Tomokazu Harimoto. The opponent in the final is teammate Wang Chuqin, currently ranked number one in the world. The two have met 13 times before, and Fan Zhendong has the advantage with 9 wins. In the final, Fan Zhendong took the lead 3-0. After that, Wang Chuqin gave it a try and won three consecutive games. In the deciding game, Fan Zhendong had the upper hand and secured the victory 11-4.
Immediately after the game, Fan Zhendong expressed concern for Wang Chuqin's injury, "I think I am more concerned about Wang Chuqin's injury than winning this championship. For the Chinese team, both of us are very important." His remarks were also commented by netizens as showing the "big picture".
Every game is a tough battle. Fan Zhendong summarized himself, "The two games of the eighth round and the semi-finals were difficult opponents for me to deal with some time ago. These victories will definitely improve me. These games are as important as the finals."
"Not only did he win the game, but he also found himself." This championship greatly boosted Fan Zhendong's confidence and morale. He said that this championship trophy gave him more expectations for the Olympics and gave him more targeted goals in his preparations. "The cruelty and uncertainty of the Olympics are unmatched by other competitions. I hope I can look at my status objectively." , show your best self.”
At the Busan World Table Tennis Championships in February this year, Fan Zhendong led the Chinese men's team to achieve 11 consecutive championships and was the only player on the team who never lost a game. However, due to the ups and downs in his form and some off-field factors, Fan Zhendong fell into a period of low ebb, so this victory came very timely. At the Paris Olympics, Fan Zhendong will participate in the men's team and men's singles competitions. Referring to the Busan World Table Tennis Championships, Fan Zhendong will basically play as the men's single number. After all, in his prime, he should shoulder this heavy responsibility in terms of ability and experience.
To enhance his strength and improve his ability to read the game, Fan Zhendong still has room for further improvement. In this Chongqing Championship, he is also looking for opportunities through changes in rhythm. "Don't be too eager for success or too harsh. I believe you can find what you want in the changes."
Looking forward to the Paris Olympics, the Chinese table tennis team has only one goal - to win five championships.
