A Famous Reporter Criticizes Liu Guoliang: Focusing on Suppressing Fan Zhendong and Wang Manyu, Packaging Sha Tou Can Only Match Ni Xia Lian
Having witnessed so many grand scenes of the national table tennis team, I must say that the outcome of this Paris Olympics has caught us somewhat off guard! Initially, we thought that the strongest mixed doubles pair, Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha, would bring a pleasant surprise, but they ended up giving the fans a resounding slap in the face.
Let's unravel the intricacies of this situation step by step.
Since the end of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the national table tennis team has embarked on a new round of generational change.
Liu Guoliang, the headmaster, has exerted great effort, pouring all resources towards Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha.
Look at it, the world's number one mixed doubles pair, coupled with Sun Yingsha's long-term dominance of the women's singles top spot, the momentum is indeed intimidating!
However, let's talk about the plight of Fan Zhendong and Wang Manyu, these two main players.
Fan Zhendong was once a flag-bearer in men's singles. In 2021, when he won the World Championships, his state was simply invincible! Unfortunately, he gradually became marginalized later on.
Take another look at Wang Manyu. In 2021, she was in the limelight, holding both the World Table Tennis Championships and National Games titles. Who could have expected that after the coaching staff changed, she would be relegated to obscurity?
Speaking of skills and tactics, Sun Yingsha's backhand twist is indeed unique, especially during the WTT Singapore Grand Slam earlier this year, where she swept opponents with three consecutive 11-3 victories, it was beautiful! However, in the women's singles final of the Paris Olympics, this style of play was cleanly deciphered by Chen Meng.
Chen Meng's experience as a veteran is not to be underestimated; she is steady when it counts!
As for Wang Chuqin, this young man does have some tricks in mixed doubles, especially his strong forehand attack, which, combined with Sun Yingsha's quick connection, made the opponents lose their bearings at last year's Durban World Table Tennis Championships.
Unfortunately, in singles competitions, he seemed a bit overconfident, being eliminated in the 32nd round, a result that is hard to justify.
You may not know this, but the national table tennis team has also experienced similar growing pains internally.
Back then, the competition between Ma Lin and Wang Hao was fierce.
But Liu Guoliang handled it beautifully back then, allowing both of them to perform at their best.
But now? It feels like there's a bit of a trade-off.
Here's an inside scoop: it's said that after Coach Xiao Zhan left, Wang Manyu's training intensity and time were affected.
This girl's backhand quality is among the best in the women's team, but unfortunately, she now has fewer opportunities to participate in important competitions.
The data shows that her world ranking dropped from second to sixth in 2023, quite a significant drop!
To say that our national table tennis team has always performed well in the Olympic mixed doubles events.
But comparing Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha to Ni Xia Lian is a bit excessive.
Look at Sun Yingsha's record: maintaining the world's first position for more than 300 days, winning the World Table Tennis Championships in team, mixed doubles, and women's singles, the quality is evident!
Recently, it's been heard that Liu Guoliang is formulating a new plan for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Now that Chen Meng and Fan Zhendong have retired, Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha are still the key training targets.
But the younger generation, such as Lin Shidong and Wang Yidi, are also growing rapidly. How to handle this generational transition is truly a technical challenge.
After all, the national table tennis team's achievements in recent years have indeed been commendable, but there may indeed be some issues in personnel utilization.
However, we must understand that the competition in table tennis is becoming increasingly fierce, and to maintain a dominant position, choices must be made.