China's national table tennis team, often referred to as the "Dream Team," has recently experienced a significant setback at the Doha Star Challenge. Instead of achieving victory, the team faced a reversal of fortune, with their top male singles players failing to secure any titles. This outcome has left many fans disappointed, as they had hoped to see China's dominance on display once again. The results were straightforward and disheartening: not only did the Chinese men's singles team fail to win any championships, but they also did not even make it past the quarterfinals. This raises questions about whether China's dominance in table tennis is waning or if this is simply a temporary setback for the younger players. In this competition, China's male singles lineup primarily consisted of young players, including Xu Yingbin, Chen Yuanyu, Xiang Peng, and Huang Youzheng, who are considered rising stars. Despite not being considered top-tier players yet, they were not expected to be eliminated in the first round. However, to everyone's surprise, they all failed to advance beyond the quarterfinals. Taking Xu Yingbin as an example, this young player, who has shown great competitiveness domestically and was widely regarded as a potential future star after his impressive performance at the National Championships, appeared to lack confidence and psychological preparation on the international stage. It seems that while the domestic arena is attractive, when it comes to real competition, he is not yet fully matured. This is directly related to experience. Xiang Peng, who won the World Youth Championships in 2021 and should have been shining…

On January 11th, Beijing time, the 2025 WTT Doha Star Challenge continued, and the semi-final spots for both the women's singles and men's singles have been determined. In the women's singles semi-finals, China and Japan each occupy two spots. Among the top eight, the Chinese team secured five spots, but unfortunately, two players were eliminated due to two internal matches in the quarter-finals, along with He Zhuojia's loss to Nagasaki Miu. Despite the elimination of several main Japanese women's singles players, former doubles partners Miharu Kikuchi and Nagasaki Miu successfully advanced, both reaching the semi-finals. This time, the women's singles semi-finals were quite unexpected, as not only did the top four seeds fail to reach the semi-finals, but the top eight seeds were also completely eliminated. Only Nagasaki Miu, seeded among the top 16, advanced, creating a dark horse. The next two women's singles semi-finals will be between China and Japan, with Chen Yi facing Miharu Kikuchi and Kuai Man facing Nagasaki Miu. In the men's singles quarter-finals: Aruna defeated Park Kang-hyun 3-1 (11-9, 11-8, 4-11, 11-9). Park Kang-hyun was the last remaining South Korean male player, but he ultimately lost. Aruna's performance this time was very stable, playing steadily and fully utilizing his advantage in forehand shots. He narrowly won three games, demonstrating good control over the match with fewer mistakes. Tomokazu Harimoto defeated Koki Niwa 3-0 (13-11, 11-3, 11-5). Prior to the match, Koki Niwa was in great form, having defeated Xiang Peng and displaying excellent skills. However, after a crucial first game where he narrowly lost to…

The grand finale of the WTT Doha Star Challenge in 2025 has concluded, with four champions already crowned. Team China emerged victorious in the women's singles and men's doubles, while Japan secured titles in the women's doubles and mixed doubles. In the women's doubles final, Daiki Oshima/Sakura Yokoi defeated Zhuo Jia He/Zong Ge Man 3-0 (11-2, 12-10, 11-9). The men's doubles final saw Xiang Peng/Xu Yingbin edge out Tomokazu Harimoto/Kakeru Matsumoto 3-2 (15-13, 4-11, 11-8, 11-13, 11-6). The mixed doubles final was a close match, with Kakeru Matsumoto/Miharu Tomokazu overcoming Huang Youzheng/Shi Xunyao 3-2 (6-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7). In the women's singles final, Kuai Man dominated Miu Kihara 4-0 (11-6, 11-3, 11-8, 11-3). The last event to be decided was the men's singles final, where Tomokazu Harimoto faced off against Danish star Groth. This time, Team China did not send their main players, with Xiang Peng and Huang Youzheng achieving the best result of reaching the round of 16. Groth played well, maintaining a good rhythm and balance on both sides. He reached his first-ever Star Challenge final after defeating Japanese rising star Daiki Oshima in the semifinals. Harimoto was in top form, advancing strongly throughout the tournament and sweeping Aruna in the semifinals. The match started with a tight 3-3 scoreline, with both players focusing on the first three shots and rarely going beyond that. Midway through the game, Groth led 6-4 but suffered from receiving errors and mistakes, allowing Harimoto to catch up at 6-6. The score remained close until the end, when Harimoto took control and…

The complete entry list for the Singapore Grand Slam is out! The national table tennis team has made significant adjustments, with Wang Chuqin and Wang Manyu leading young players. This move by the national table tennis team is truly dazzling to watch! The Singapore WTT Grand Slam is a "battle of the gods" in the world of table tennis, with a prize pool of $1.5 million and 2000 points up for grabs. Who wouldn't want to take a piece of that? The competition dates also coincide with our Spring Festival, from January 30th to February 9th. These table tennis athletes won't be able to go home for the holidays, which is quite tough! Now that the entry list is out, netizens have turned into "Sherlocks," starting to analyze it. On the men's singles side, we have familiar faces like Wang Chuqin, Lin Shidong, Liang Jingkun, Lin Gaoyuan, Xiang Peng, and Zhou Qihao, all with solid skills. For the women's singles, we have Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Wang Yidi, Chen Xingtong, Qian Tianyi, and He Zhuojia, each a "heroine" in their own right. But the doubles lineup is really surprising! Wang Chuqin/Lin Shidong and Wang Manyu/Kuai Man are two new pairs, fresh as newly wrapped dumplings! The fans of "Big Head" (Wang Chuqin) can't sit still: "Didn't Big Head say he wanted to focus on singles? Why is he playing doubles again?" Indeed, Big Head is now juggling three events, busier than visiting relatives during the New Year! It's like an experienced driver taking a novice along. Although Lin Shidong has…

On January 11th, Beijing time, the 2025 Doha Star Challenge Table Tennis Tournament entered its final day. Prior to this, three doubles titles had been decided, all featuring matches between China and Japan. The Chinese team lost to Japan in both women's doubles and mixed doubles but managed to defeat Japan in men's doubles. The women's singles final was another battle between China and Japan, with Kuai Man facing off against Miu Kihara. It was quite unexpected that both players made it to the final, as neither of them were among the top 16 seeds, and their world rankings were not particularly advantageous. Their strength and past achievements were also not highly regarded. In the semifinals, Kuai Man swept Nagasaki Meiyo in three straight sets, decisively defeating her opponent. On the other hand, Miu Kihara staged a comeback to defeat Chen Yi. This time, Miu Kihara became the best-performing Japanese women's singles player. Currently, the competition for Japanese women's singles is very fierce, with many young players emerging to compete for the main lineup spots. Achievements are crucial, especially since she won the silver medal in the women's team event at the World Table Tennis Championships, but her individual results have not been very impressive. Kuai Man quickly entered the game state, with fast connections and a proactive playing style. She led 6-1 and controlled the rhythm of the match with stable performance. Her service rounds were particularly successful, only losing one point. Her rhythm changes during rallies were also good, and she took the first set 11-6. In the…

Translation of the article content into English: On January 11, Beijing time, the last day of the Doha Challenge, there are a total of three matches today: the men's and women's singles semi-finals at 4 pm; the mixed doubles final at 6:30 pm; and the men's and women's singles finals at 9 pm. After yesterday's matches, the top four in both men's and women's singles have been determined. The top four in women's singles are China's Kuai Man, Chen Yu, Japan's Nagasaki Meiyo, and Miharu Kihara. Unfortunately, the two most anticipated veterans, He Zhuojia and Qian Tianyi, were eliminated in the quarterfinals, which is quite regrettable. Especially Chen Yu's 3-0 victory over Qian Tianyi, this match can be said to have both joys and concerns. Joy that Chen Yu has really made a lot of progress, concern that Qian Tianyi failed to advance to the finals. The top four in men's singles are Tomokazu Harimoto, Aruna, Groth, and Japan's. Regrettably, all the Chinese men's singles players were eliminated in the round of 16, especially Huang Youzheng, who everyone loves to watch, lost 1-3 to Qiu Dang in the round of 16. Everyone knows that although Qiu Dang is a German player, he learned the Chinese straight bat style, so he should be very familiar with Huang Youzheng's playing style. Therefore, throughout the match, Qiu Dang focused on attacking Huang Youzheng's weaknesses. At the same time, we also hope that Huang Youzheng will continue to work hard in the future and cheer him on. So we hope that in tonight's women's…

Star Match: Japanese Men's Singles Suffer a Crushing 0-3 Defeat, European Veteran Advances to the Finals, Tomokazu Harimoto in Explosive Form On January 11th, Beijing time, the 2025 WTT Doha Star Match continues. Today marks the final day of the event, with three champions being crowned. Prior to this, the women's doubles and men's doubles champions have already been determined, with China and Japan each securing one title. In the semi-finals, two women's singles matches were contested between China and Japan. Chen Yi won the first set but was subsequently reversed by Miu Kihara, who won three consecutive sets. During the rallies, Chen Yi did not perform as well as the previous day. On the other hand, Kuai Man dominated with a 3-0 sweep over Miyuu Nagasaki, improving her performance with each set, culminating in an explosive third set where her advantage was evident. After the match, Kuai Man stated that she quickly mobilized herself and had made extensive preparations before the game. Her mentality during the match was good, and her overall performance was satisfactory. She remained focused throughout the match, and as her momentum increased, her opponent's decreased. She aims to display the spirit of young athletes in the finals. In the concluded men's singles semi-final, Tomokazu Harimoto easily defeated Aruna in three sets, achieving a crushing victory. Today, Aruna was largely restricted, performing well in the latter half of the first set but becoming increasingly passive in the following two sets. As he fell behind in points, his mentality became anxious, leading to more errors. The last…

On January 11, 2025, the Doha Star Table Tennis Tournament will conclude with its final day of competition. The Chinese national team has already secured the men's doubles championship and continues to compete for titles in women's singles and mixed doubles, facing off against Japanese opponents, including a decisive mixed doubles match against Koki Niwa/Mima Ito. Following the conclusion of the previous main event day, the top four singles players were determined. In women's singles, China still has two contenders: Kuai Man and Chen Yi. However, Zhou Qihao withdrew from the tournament due to injury, and other players such as Huang Youzheng, Xiang Peng, Xu Yingbin, Chen Yuanyu, Qian Tianyi, Zong Geman, He Zhuojia, and Shi Xunyao have been eliminated. Among them, the men's singles team has been completely defeated, with their best result being the round of 16. On the Japanese side, Tomokazu Harimoto, Daiki Yoshimoto, Miyuu Kihara, and Miyu Nagasaki have advanced. The two doubles events have concluded, with the Chinese team achieving one victory and one defeat. In men's doubles, Xiang Peng/Xu Yingbin won 3-2 against Tomokazu Harimoto/Koki Niwa, while in women's doubles, He Zhuojia/Zong Geman lost 0-3 to Saki Shibata/Sakura Yokoi. The men's doubles championship by Xiang Peng/Xu Yingbin holds special significance as it is the first ranking tournament championship for the Chinese team this year. Although their individual performances were average, the experience of losing is certainly worth summarizing, and it is believed that they can do better in the future. Despite the absence of key players, the Chinese team has performed commendably against many…

The results of the second day of the Doha Star Challenge main event were truly unexpected! The Japanese women's team, originally full of confidence and hoping to make a big splash in their first major competition of the new year, suffered a devastating blow that left many feeling compelled to reflect. The Japanese team took this competition very seriously, sending five players to participate in this station's event. Among them, four were top eight seeds, with three being top three seeds. These five players are the number one seed of this competition, Hina Hayata, the second seed, Miyuu Kato, the third seed, Sarina Tokimoto, and the sixth seed, Miu Hirano. These four are the absolute mainstays of the Japanese team, along with Sakura Yokoi, who competed with Mima Ito for the fifth main position. With this super-luxurious lineup, the momentum was truly aggressive, as if the women's singles championship was already in the bag. They were clearly aiming to compete with the national table tennis team, wanting to prove their strength on the international stage, and even coveting the position of becoming the leading force in the world of women's table tennis. However, on our side of the national table tennis team, the strategy was much more sophisticated. We did not choose to confront the Japanese team head-on but instead focused on training our players. We only sent out the lineup of Ge Man, Xunyao Shi, Tianyi Qian, Zhuojia He, and Kuaiman Kuai. Among these, only Tianyi Qian can be basically confirmed as one of China's top five main players,…

The singles quarter-finals of the WTT Doha Star Match have all been determined, but surprisingly, none of the four Chinese men's singles players managed to advance to the quarter-finals, with two of them failing to even reach the round of 16. Although the purpose of this WTT Doha Star Match was to train newcomers, such poor results still made fans realize the extremely weak echelon strength of the Chinese men's team, especially after Fan Zhendong and Ma Long withdrew from the world rankings and WTT events. Currently, among the new players of the national table tennis team, perhaps the only hope is on Lin Shidong. It should be noted that Liu Guoliang previously mentioned in an interview with CCTV that the first year (2025) is precisely the year for training newcomers, but with such a foundation, who can ultimately step up? It's worth considering. In this WTT Doha Star Match, the national table tennis team originally sent out five promising newcomers to compete, but due to Zhou Qihao's sudden injury and forced withdrawal, the hopes for the men's singles were placed on the remaining four players. Among these four, the one considered to have the greatest chance of winning the championship is 23-year-old Xu Yingbin. So far, Xu Yingbin has successively defeated all the main players within the national table tennis team, including Wang Chuqin, Fan Zhendong, Ma Long, Liang Jingkun, Lin Gaoyuan, Lin Shidong, and world champion Xu Xin. However, Xu Yingbin was unexpectedly eliminated in the qualifying round by South Korean player Zhao Shengmin with a score of…