Beijing Daily: Frequent Losses of Chinese Table Tennis Team Indicate Shrinking Technical Edge, Boosting Confidence of Other Teams’ Players

At around 2 AM on October 28, the WTT Montpellier Champions event came to an end. However, this time, there were no Chinese players in the final. In response, Beijing Daily commented that although it was just a commercial competition, for the “wealthy” Chinese table tennis team (CTT), which had just suffered a setback at the Asian Championships, not making it to the final was indeed a bit disappointing. Without the presence of Olympic champions, the CTT’s lineup, composed of the “second tier” and newcomers, clearly did not have the same dominance in today’s competitive environment.

For a long time, the strength of the CTT lay in its “pyramid top” being unattainable, capable of overcoming challenges in world competitions. Although this loss can still be attributed to “poor performance at the beginning of a new cycle,” it cannot be denied that compared to the Olympic lineup, several “secondary mainstays” of the Chinese team did not have as significant an advantage when facing top players from other associations.

Among the four participating newcomers, Shi Xinyao lost to Qian Tianyi, while the other three were defeated by players under 20 years old. For them, without the long-term mental pressure and fatigue of preparing for the Olympics, the start of a new cycle should have been the best opportunity to face the “future rivals” who are already major opponents of the CTT. However, the results were disappointing and revealed certain hidden concerns.

Qian Tianyi, 24, lost to Zhang Benmei in the semifinals. As the highest-ranked player outside the “five golden flowers” of the CTT, Qian Tianyi’s performance in this event was not without highlights. She eliminated the mainstay Wang Yidi and defeated the Indian “unusual player” Batra in straight sets, all of which were comebacks from early deficits. In the semifinals, she showed great tenacity, leveling the score twice, but she never fully utilized her technical strengths and was completely outmatched in terms of momentum.

While Zhang Benmei is only 16, her experience in major tournaments, including the Olympics, and her world ranking at 7th place, clearly gave her an edge. Her handling of crucial points was more reasonable and decisive, and her mentality was more stable. This is also where young Lebrun and Lin Shidong fell short—compared to their peers, the starting points for CTT newcomers are different. Previously, world champions and mainstays led the charge, but now with the transition between old and new players, CTT’s young talents need to hold themselves to higher standards and strive to catch up.

It is also important to note that the overall strength of foreign associations’ top players is improving, and the CTT’s technical and tactical advantages are shrinking. Frequent losses are boosting the confidence of other teams’ players, especially the new generation, making future “main opponents” increasingly difficult to handle. While the CTT’s success at the Paris Olympics and the Grand Slam in China is evident, a temporary setback does not define the trend of future major competitions. However, for the CTT, which has dominated the “first tier,” it is undoubtedly necessary to address the “subsequent” issues now.