Ma Long Becomes Most Successful World Tour Grand Finals Player Ever

Ma Long celebrates becoming the most successful World Tour Grand Final player in history

After 22 World Tour events in 2015, the GAC Group 2015 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals champions are MA Long and DING Ning, after an action filled event concluded today 13 December in Lisbon, Portugal. MA Long became the most successful ITTF World Tour Grand Finals player, winning his fourth title in dramatic circumstances in the final match of 2015. The world champion, who has only lost one match in 2015, had a titanic battle with his team mate, 18 year old FAN Zhendong, in one of the most exciting finals in history. The world number one raced to a 2-0 lead only for FAN Zhendong to win the next three games and looked like he was going to do the unexpected of to beat the world number one. However he was left heartbroken, as MA Long closed out the match 12-10, 12-10, 11-13, 7-11, 7-11, 11-8, 11-9. The newly crowned champion stated: "We had a tough match, the feeling wasn't the best for both of us, and neither of us could lead in the match. I had to just stay calm, as I knew I would have a chance to win the match if I just kept my level high." "I am very happy to beat my ex-captain WANG Liqin's record of World Tour Grand Finals victories. He is a well respected athlete, so I'm happy to have made this history." "I wasn't thinking much about the records, but just played the best I could." 2015 World Champion DING Ning won her first World Tour Grand Finals, after losing four of her previous finals. Despite being exhausted after a packed year, DING made it fifth time lucky and defeated her team mate CHEN Meng, who earlier beat world number one LIU Shiwen en route to the final. The 25-year-old was pushed by her younger team mate but her experience that has lead her to two World Championships titles led to her victory: 13-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-2, 9-11, 11-7. A relieved DING stated after the match: "I have made it to the World Tour Grand Finals Singles final for the past 4 times, but lost all 4, this is my fifth attempt." "Before the match, I have a strong desire for victory, and break the 'curse'. Since I started playing in the ITTF World Tour, every time I qualified for the Grand Finals, I could always reach the final, so I really hoped to win. Now that I have won, I feel really happy about it." Masataka MORIZONO & Yuya OSHIMA became the first ever Japanese pair to win the World Tour Grand Finals Men's Doubles title. In the process, the young Japanese duo broke the hearts of the capacity Portuguese crowd, beating local favorites Tiago APOLONIA &Joao MONTEIRO 11-6, 8-11,13-11, 12-10, 11-8 in a thrilling gold medal match. The women's defending champions, 15-year-olds Miu HIRANO & Mima ITO could not make it two doubles victories for Japan, losing to the Chinese pair DING Ning & ZHU Yuling 11-5, 11-3, 11-9, 11-4 in a one sided final. Yuya OSHIMA added a second gold medal to his collection, by winning the men's under 21 title. OSHIMA, who had a breakthrough year winning two under 21 events and a senior World Tour event in 2015, beat ZHAI Yujia (DEN) 11-5, 11-4, 9-11, 11-3, 11-8 to secure the title. Singapore's LIN Ye won her second under 21 title by defeating Yui HAMAMOTO (JPN) 12-10, 8-11, 4-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-8 in the women's under 21 final. The GAC Group 2015 ITTF World Tour was the year-ending finale to the US$3,000,000 ITTF World Tour, whereby the top 16 singles and 8 doubles pairs qualified through collecting #Race2Lisbon points throughout the 2015 ITTF World Tour. The GAC 2015 ITTF World Tour is split into three tiers (highest first): Super (6 events), Major (6 events), Challenge (11 events). The higher the series, the more prize money, world ranking points, Race to Lisbon points and higher quality of competition on offer.

2014 Decider Kicks off 2015 World Tour Grand Finals

2014 Finallists Ovtcharov & Mizutani will face off in the first round here in Lisbon

The world’s best table tennis stars have gathered in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon in preparation for the GAC Group 2015 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals which starts today 10 December and runs until 13 December 2015. Finalists at the GAC Group 2014 ITTF World Tour last year in Bangkok, Europe’s top player Dimitrij OVTCHAROV (GER) and Jun MIZUTANI (JPN) are set to an early face-off in the first round of the Men’s Singles event. MIZUTANI claimed the title eventually in Bangkok, but at their latest encounter at the Liebherr 2015 ITTF Men’s World Cup, it was OVTCHAROV who prevailed. “It’s a very hard draw for the both of us,” shared OVTCHAROV after the draw ceremony. “We have played seven times in the last 12 months, of which I won four times, but he has won three out of the four times we played at major international tournaments, so the results is going to be very open.” The 27-year-old German added “Often the one with the better start wins, but the scores will be very close. I will of course try my very best to win this!” Local hero Marcos FREITAS (POR) has the toughest draw out of everyone, with the European Championships runner up facing world number one and World Champion MA Long in the first round. The fans could also expect a matchup between the reigning World Champion DING Ning and newly crowned 2015 Female Table Tennis Star LIU Shiwen in the Women’s Singles event. The duo last played internationally at the epic gold medal match at the 2015 World Championships, where DING overcame her injury in the decider to take her second World Championships title. The GAC Group 2015 ITTF World Tour is the year-ending finale to the US$3,000,000 ITTF World Tour, whereby the top 16 singles and 8 doubles pairs qualified through collecting #Race2Lisbon points throughout the 2015 ITTF World Tour. The GAC 2015 ITTF World Tour is split into three tiers (highest first): Super (6 events), Major (6 events), Challenge (11 events). The higher the series, the more prize money, world ranking points, Race to Lisbon points and higher quality of competition on offer

Ma Long & Liu Shiwen are the 2015 Male & Female Table Tennis Stars

A star filled selfie of all the 2015 ITTF Star Award winners

2015 World Champion MA Long, and 2015 Women's World Cup Champion LIU Shiwen are the respective 2015 ITTF Male & Female Table Tennis Stars at the 2015 ITTF Star Awards. The 2015 ITTF Star Awards was held on 9 December at the Patio da Gala in Lisbon, Portugal, to honor and celebrate the table tennis stars, athletes and coaches, for their achievements in 2015. Eight prestigious awards were given out on star-studded evening in the city's emblematic landmark. The two most eyed awards of the year, the Male and Female Table Tennis Stars were determined by the 60,000 public votes from fans all around the world, combined with the judging results from an expert panel consisting of ITTF Athletes' Commission, the ITTF President, and various international media. Hot favourite for the night, MA did not disappoint the majority of the fans who voted for him on the ITTFStarAwards.com voting page to claim the 2015 Male Table Tennis Star Awards presented by Seamaster, after becoming the 2015 World Champion and 2015 Men's World Cup Champion. After fending off contest from compatriot FAN Zhendong, European Champion Dimitrij OVTCHAROV, and 2014 World Tour Grand Finals Champion Jun MIZUTANI, the current world number one shared "Thank you for the award and to everyone who has supported me, this award is recognition of my best ever year in 2015. This award means a lot as it's the first time I have won it and I want to win it again and again. I will continue to work hard and success next year." The Female Table Tennis Star Awards presented by Nittaku saw hot contest between DING Ning (CHN), Kasumi ISHIKAWA (CHN), LIU Shiwen (CHN), and Petrissa SOLJA (GER). It was LIU who secured the most votes to take home the prestigious award with her. The four time Women's World Cup title holder stated: "It is a great honour to receive this award; my thanks to the ITTF and everyone who has supported me. This award is a very special way to finish 2015 and I hope for even more success in the Olympic year next year." The 'Point of the Century' played by FANG Bo and MA Long at the Qoros 2015 World Championships Men's Singles final that generated over 2 million views on YouTube, was also named the 2015 Table Tennis Star Point presented by DHS. The Male and Female Table Tennis Stars for the Para Table Tennis category went to Indonesia's Class 9 player David Jacobs and Serbia's Borislava PERIC-RANKOVIC (Class 3) respectively for their achievements in the 2015 Continental Para Championships and Para events around the world. With the spectacular results posted by the Chinese team in 2015, the Head Coach LIU Guoliang was the natural winner for the Star Coach of the year presented by Butterfly. New to the 2015 ITTF Star Awards, a Breakthrough Star award presented by TMS International was given out to Japan's 15-year-old sensation Mima ITO. ITO was not only the youngest ever winner of an ITTF World Tour event, but also made it to the Japanese Olympic team line up for Rio 2016 Olympic Games at a young age of 14. In addition, a Fair Play Star award was handed out to Linor CITAKU and Vlona MALOKU from Kosovo for their act of fair play at the Qoros 2015 World Championships. The pair lent their spare rackets to their opponents in the first round of the mixed doubles competition who failed their racket testing, to ensure that the match continued

Borussia Düsseldorf Swept In The Ecl

Borussia Düsseldorf suffered a sweeping defeat in the 2015-16 European Champions League's 5th round. The German club fell against Chartres that remains unbeaten in the group D. Despite this defeat, Borussia stays in the second place, waiting for the results of Bogoria vs Sten Ostrov. 

Borussia Düsseldorf couldn't win at home. The German club faced its second defeat against Chartres, leader of the group B. For this match, Danny Heister, Borussia's coach, replaced Patrick Franziska. Timo Boll is still recovering from his surgery. 

Par Gerell got the first point as he defeated Sharath Kamal Achanta by 13-11, 11-7 and 11-8. Gao Ning overcame Panagiotis Gionis by 11-5, 11-6 and 11-7. In the third match Robert Gardos stood victorious over Danny Heister by 12-10, 16-14 and 11-8. 

Despite the defeat, Borussia Düsseldorf stays in the second place. Tomorrow Bogoria Grodzisk Mazowiecki and Sten Ostrov Havlickuv Brod will meet for the 5th round of the group B. 

China’s WANG Manyu defends Junior World Champion crown in Vendée

China's Wang Manyu and Liu DIngshuo claims Singles World Junior Championships titles in France

China’s WANG Manyu has successfully defended her Junior Girls’ World title at the ITTF 2015 World Junior Table Tennis Championships that concluded today, 6 December, in Vendée, France. 16-year-old WANG is now the first player to ever win 2 consecutive Singles World Junior Championship titles, after coming back from 1-3 to beat compatriot WANG Yidi 4-3 (11-6, 18-20, 7-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-7, 11-7) in a 7-games thriller. “It feels great, and I’m really excited to be able to defend my singles title, “ shared WANG after her victory. “It’s been a tough journey having to face many strong players along the way to the final, and playing against Wang Yidi in the final.” “When I was 1-3 games down, I knew I had to fight all I can in order to win, I changed my tactics and played few risky shots to come back.” The Boys’ Singles Gold medal match was a battle between the shakehand style and the traditional penhold style, which had the local crowd cheering throughout the match. It was LIU Dingshuo (CHN), the shakehand player, who eventually prevailed over XUE Fei (CHN), the sole male penholder player in the tournament. LIU accounted for XUE 4-0 (11-7, 11-8, 11-5) to win his first World Junior Championships crown. The pleased 17-year-old shared “Of course I’m happy to be able to win here, it’s a good way to prove myself. But I see this as a short term milestone, to move further, I still have to work harder to achieve more.” China continued their dominance in the Doubles event, sending 5 out of the 6 finalists pairs. In the Women’s Doubles, Korea DPR duo KO Un Gum & RI Yong Hae faced Chinese pair CHEN Ke & WANG Manyu, despite pushing the Chinese to their limits, CHEN & WANG won in four straight games (11-9, 11-9, 11-9, 11-7). In an all-Chinese final, defending mixed doubles champions WANG Chuqin & CHEN Xingtong surrendered their titles to XUE Fei & CHEN Ke 3-4 (11-6, 11-6, 7-11, 7-11, 4-11, 11-6, 9-11). Success in the Mixed Doubles, XUE joined hands with WANG Chuqin in the Boy’s Doubles Final to claim the title from LIU Dingshuo & ZHU Cheng 4-3 (2-11, 11-13, 11-13, 12-10, 13-11, 11-8, 11-6). Presented by the Swaythling Club International, the Fair Play Award at the 2015 World Junior Table Tennis Championships was won by Egypt’s Aly Ghallab for his act of fair play at the tournament. Mr. Khaled El-Salhy, President of the African Table Tennis Federation, shared “He’s a very honest player; always he plays fairly. He is always very positive when he plays, he tries to win the point not save the point: I am very proud of his efforts.” With the 2015 World Junior Table Tennis Championships concluded, all eyes now turn to the 2015 ITTF Star Awards on 9 December, followed by the year-ending GAC Group 2015 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals in Lisbon, Portugal from 10-13 December 2015. Winners: Boys’ Team: China Girls’ Team: China Boys’ Singles: LIU Dingshuo (CHN) Girls’ Singles: WANG Manyu (CHN) Boys’ Doubles: WANG Chuqin (CHN) & XUE Fei (CHN) Girls’ Doubles: CHEN Ke (CHN) & WANG Manyu (CHN) Mixed Doubles: XUE Fei (CHN) & CHEN Ke (CHN)

Ströck Stood Victorious In The Women's Ecl

Ströck emerged successfully in the 2015-16 Women's European Champions League. The Austrian club posted a close victory over Szekszard AC and leads the group B. Berlin Eastside also stood victorious in the group B and is already in the main draw. 

SVNO Ströck and TTC Berlin Eastside emerged successfully in the Women's European Champions League. TTC Berlin Eastside defeated Bursa Büyüksehir Belediyespor by 3-0 and remained unbeaten in the group A and reached the main draw. 

Petrissa Solja overcame Sibel Ismail Remzi by 11-5, 11-4 and 11-7. In the second match Georgina Pota stood victorious over Polina Mikhailova by 9-11, 11-4, 11-7, 10-12, 11-8. In the third match Yui Hamamoto beat Maria Dolgikh by 3-11, 11-4, 7-11, 11-7 and 11-7. 

In the group B Ströck beat Szekszard AC and is the new leader. The qualifiers will ve defined in the last round. Petra Lovas got the first point for Szekszard AC. She overcame Tetyana Bilenko by 11-8, 14-12 and 11-6. Matilda Ekholm won against Li Fen by 8-11, 11-3, 16-14 and 11-8, and leveled for Ströck. 

Wang Yu beat Lea Rakovac and collected the second point for the Turkisch club. Bilenko redeemed herself after defeating Li Fen by 11-8, 12-10 and 11-3. In the deciding match Ekholm stood victorious over Dora Madarasz by 11-6, 7-11, 12-10 and 11-3. 

Jean-Michel Saive Says Good-Bye To International Competition

Jean-Michel Saive said good-bye to the international scene. The living legend announced in a press conference today that he retires from the international competition but he will continue playing at the ITTF Legends Tour. 

A living legend announced his retirement from the international scene today. Jean-Michel Saive informed on a press conference in Belgium that he won't participate in international competition anymore. The 1991 European champion also published a letter  on his website to thank everyone who was part of his successfull career. 

Saive began his professional career in 1983 and since then he has collected important titles, such as the European Championships in Birmingham 1983, the 1994 Europe Top-12, two European Leagues, 6 European leagues with La Villete Charleroi, 19 Belgian National Championships, 3 Pro Tour tournaments. 

He also shares a record with other legends such as Jorgen Persson and Zoran Primorac. They are the only players who have competed in 7 Olympic Games. They have participated since Seoul 1988, when Table Tennis was introduced, until London 2012. 

Fortunately, we will more of the Belgian player because he will be one of the player at the ITTF Legends Tour tobe held on 5 February in Belgium. 

Fan Zhendong Beat Xu Xin In The 2015 Swedish Open's Final

Fan Zhendong emerged champion of the 2015 Swedish Open. The wonder boy of China stood victorious over Xu Xin in the final and defended the title won last year. Unfortunately, Fan couldn't win the title in doubles, he and Zhang Jike lost to Xu Xin and Fang Bo in the final. Tristan Flore of France claimed the title in the U21 event.

Fan Zhendong captured the last title of the 2015 World Tour circuit. The Chinese player defeated his teammate Xu Xin in the final match. Xu Xinposted an overwhelming 11-1 in the first game but Fan managed to recover and sealed his victory by 12-10, 7-11, 11-5, 11-6 and 11-9. 

To book a place in the final, the wonder boy of China overcame his teammate Liang Jingkun by 11-5, 8-11, 10-12, 11-9, 11-8 and 11-7. In the first semifinal Xu Xin swept with Sweden's Kristian Karlsson by 11-5, 11-4, 11-3 and 11-8. 

In the men's doubles Xu Xin and Fang Bo were crowned champions. The Chinese pair emerged successfully over Fan Zhendong and Zhang Jike by 13-11, 11-9, 7-11 and 11-8 in the final. 

In the U21 event the title stayed in Europe. Tristan Flore of France won against Croatia's Filip Zeljko by 11-7, 11-9, 5-11 and 11-6.

Men's doubles Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Xu Xin vs Kristian KarlssonVideo kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Fan Zhendong vs Liang Jingkun Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Mu Zi Won The 2015 Swedish Open

Mu Zi clinched the last title of the 2015 World Tour circuit. The Chinese player won the 2015 Swedish Open after beating Zhu Yuling in a full-distance match. Previously Mu also defeated Ding Ning and Kasumi Ishikawa. In doubles Mu Zi and Chen Meng were crowned champions. The U21 event was won by Yui Hamamoto. 

Mu Zi was crowned champion of the 2015 Swedish Open. The Chinese player clinched the last title of the season and sealed an amazing performance after eliminated top players such as Ding Ning and Kasumi Ishikawa. 

In the finals Mu stood victorious over her teammate Zhu Yuling by 11-8, 9-11, 11-9, 11-8, 4-11, 5-11 and 11-3. To reach the final, Mu Zi defeated Japan's Kasumi Ishikawa by 11-9, 13-11, 11-9, 14-16 and 11-3. Zhu Yuling emerged successfully over Liu Shiwen by 11-8, 9-11, 11-9, 8-11, 7-11, 11-6 and 11-6. 

Mu Zi also claimed the title in the doubles event. She and Chen Meng posted a sweeping victory over the Singaporean pair of Lin Ye and Zhou Yihan by 11-7, 11-9 and 11-5. In the U21 event Yui Hamamoto of Japan overcame Romania's Bernadette Szocs by 11-8, 11-5, 6-11 and 11-9. 

Womens doubles - Final Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Mu Zi vs Kasumi Ishikawa Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Mu Zi vs Zhu Yuling Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Kristian Karlsson Is The Only European In 2015 Swedish Open's Semifinal

Kristian Karlsson waved the flag for Sweden at home. He is the only European player in semifinals after beating his teammate Jens Lundqvist. He will meet Xu Xin tomorrow. Fan Zhendong and Liang Jingkun will clash in the second semifinals.

Kristian Karlsson against China in semifinals of the 2015 Swedish Open. The Swede reached the penultimate round as he stood victorious over Jens Lundqvist, who eliminated Zhang Jikein the third round, 12-10, 11-6, 11-6 and 11-3. In semifinals Karlsson will meet Xu Xin, who beat Chuang Chih-Yuan by 9-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-9 and 11-8. 

In the second semifinal Fan Zhendong will face Liang Jingkun. Fan eliminated Sweden's Anton Kallberg by 11-9, 11-6, 11-6, 7-11, 7-11 and 11-7 in quarterfinals, while Liang defeated Marcos Freitas by 16-14, 10-12, 9-11, 5-11, 11-3, 11-5 and 11-8. 

Xu Xin vs Chuang Chih-Yuan Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel 

Kristian Karlsson vs Jens Lundqvist Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel 

Fan Zhendong vs Anton Kallberg Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel 

Jiang Lingkun vs Marcos Freitas Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel 

Ding Ning eliminated from the 2015 Swedish Open, loses to compatriot Mu Zi in four straight games in the third round

Ding Ning was eliminated from the 2015 Swedish Open. The world champion faced defeat against her compatriot Mu Zi in four straight games in the third round. after that, Mu overcame Miu Hirano and reached semifinals. Kasumi Ishikawa is the only non-Chinese player in competition as she emerged successfully over Ai Fukuhara. 

Ding Ning was the biggest victim in the 2015 Swedish Open's women singles. The world champion suffered a sweeping defeat against her compatriot Mu Zi by 4-0. Ding was swept by 8-11, 7-11, 12-14 and 2-11. 

In quarterfinals Mu stood victorious over Miu Hirano by 11-8, 15-13, 11-4 and 11-8. In semifinals she will face Kasumi Ishikawa. The Japanese player defeated Ai Fukuhara by 12-10, 6-11, 11-7, 11-3 and 14-12 in quarterfinals. 

The second semifinal will be a Chinese duel. Zhu Yuling booked a place in semifinals as she overcame Portugal's Yu Fu by 11-7, 11-8, 11-8 and 11-3. Zhu will meet Liu Shiwen, who overcame Germany's Han Ying by 11-6, 8-11, 11-4, 11-6 and 11-5. 

Mu Zi vs Miu Hirano Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Liu Shiwen vs Han Ying Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Zhang Jike Eliminated By Lundqvist From The 2015 Swedish Open

Jens Lundqvist caused the biggest upset so far at the 2015 Swedish Open. The host nation's player eliminated Zhang Jike in the third round. The Olympic champion became the third Chinese victim in the tournament after the eliminations of Fang Bo and Yan An. Yesterday they are beaten by Canada's Eugene Wang and Sweden's Anton Kallberg, respectively. 

Zhang Jike became the biggest victim at the 2015 Swedish Open. The Chinese player can find victory route in the 2015 World Tour and faced defeat by hands of Jens Lundqvist in the third round. 

Lundqvist took the lead as he won the first game by 11-6, then the Olympic champion leveled by 11-5. But the Swede managed to win the next games by 11-9 and 11-3. Zhang Jike fought back and got the 5th game by 11-5. Unfortunately for the Chinese player, Lundqvist sealed his victory by 12-10 in the 6th game. 

Zhang Jike suffered the same fate of his teammates Fang Bo and Yan An yesterday. Fang Bo was defeated by Canada's Eugene Wang by 10-12, 11-2, 11-9, 4-11, 11-8, 9-11 and 11-5. Yan An lost to the host nation's Anton Kallberg. The young player prevailed by 15-13, 8-11, 13-11, 6-11, 6-11, 11-9 and 11-9. 

Another big victim of yesterday was Jun Mizutani. He suffered defeat against China'sLiang Jingkun by 9-11, 11-9, 5-11, 5-11, 11-7, 11-6 and 8-11. 

Anton Kallberg vs Yan AnVideo kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Michael Maze Eliminated From The 2015 Swedish Open

Michael Maze suffered an early defeat at the 2015 Swedish Open. The Danish player, who is coming back after recovering from an injury, was beaten by Sweden's Jens Lundqvist in the first round. Maze had his chances but the host nation's prevailed in a full-distance match. 

ITTF. Michael Maze was one of the victims in the first round of the 2015 Swedish Open. The former European champion is progressively coming back to tournaments after being a long time away from tables for a knee injury. 

In the first round Maze made his debut against Jens Lundqvist. He took the lead by 13-11 and 11-6, but the Swede leveled by 12-10 and 11-8. Lundqvist also won the fifth match by 11-3 but Maze fought back and leveled by 11-9. In the 7th game Lundqvist prevailed by 11-7. 

Michael Maze vs Jens Lundqvist

Video kindly shared by Official ITTF Channel

Borussia Düsseldorf Got Another Defeat In The Bundesliga

Borussia Düsseldorf scored its fourth defeat in the Bundesliga. The defending champion lost to Ochsenhausen in the 7th round and left the play-offs zone. Panagiotis Gionis and Sharath Kamal Achanta weren't enough to secure victory, while Timo Boll and Patrick Franziska recovered from injuries.

TTBL. Borussia Düsseldorf can't find victory route in the Bundesliga. The record-breaking club got its 4th defeat in the seventh round held last weekend. Borussia lost to Ochsenhausen and went down from 4th to 5th place, leaving the play-offs zone.

Simon Gauzy won the first point against Panagiotis Gionis by 11-7, 9-11, 11-8 and 11-4. In the second match Sharath Kamal Achanta leveled at 1-1 after beating Liam Pitchford by 7-11, 11-8, 11-9 and 11-6. 

Jakub Dyjas defeated Danny Heister, Borussia's coach, by 11-9, 11-5 and 11-5, and collected the seconf point for Ochsenhausen. Gionis redeemed himself as he overcame Liam Pitchford by 11-9, 9-11, 13-11, 8-11 and 13-11. But Achanta couldn't repeat success in the deciding match. He lost to Gauzy by 11-13, 11-6, 7-11, 13-11 and 7-11. 

In the previous round Borussia also faced a close defeat. The reigning champion lost to TTC Hagen. Its other defeats were against Saarbrücken and Zugbrücke Grenzau.

Petrissa Solja Praised Liu Shiwen In The World Cup

Petrissa Solja started as a qualifier in this year’s Women’s World Cup but as the competition progressed, she was labelled as the dark horse. After winning first in her group, Solja caused two consecutive upsets in the main draw, defeating the seeded Feng Tianwei and Ai Fukuhara. However, in the semifinals, she failed to continue her wonderful performance. 

PingPang World. Petrissa Solja showed her best performance after she overcame some of the biggest names in table tennis but there was one player who failed her. 

Petrissa Solja attended the World Cup and had to play in the qualifying round. After winning the two matches, she went straight to the main draw and caused a series of upsets. 

In the first round of the main draw, Petrissa Solja defeated Feng Tianwei, the fifth seed. “In the Qatar Open, I lost to Feng Tianwei in 1-4 but today, I played well. Feng Tianwei’s forehand is very strong but my mobility was very flexible. I did a good job in my defence against her attacks.” Solja said.  

Petrissa Solja vs Feng Tianwei 2015 World Cup R16 
video kindly shared by janus770

In the quarterfinals, she caused another upset and this time to the hosting team. She scored 4-3 against Ai Fukuhara. 

Petrissa Solja vs Ai Fukuhara 2015 World Cup QF 
video kindly shared by janus770

“I simply can’t dare to believe that I can win. I am very happy now. I was not in the condition in the first three sets. At that time, I was disappointed with myself. However, winning one set at a time would be fine. As the match progressed, I focused my attention and efforts in adjusting myself.” 

After winning over Fukuhara, Petrissa Solja was now labelled as the dark horse of the competition. She advanced into the semifinals and had a bigger player to face, Liu Shiwen of China. This time, she failed and she had high regards to the Chinese player. 

Petrissa Solja vs Liu Shiwen 2015 World Cup SF 
video kindly shared by janus770

“The quality of Liu Shiwen’s offences is very high. She is the best player in the world. She is very intelligent and got my weakness. Her level of competitiveness is clearly higher than mine.” Patricia Solja concluded. 

Ma Long Nominated For 2015 Male Star

As 2015 is winding up, ITTF released their shortlist for the annual Star Awards Night to be held during the Grand Finals next month in Portugal. In the male category, Fan Zhendong, Jun Mizutani, Dimitrij Ovtcharov and Ma Long were the nominees, while Ding Ning, Liu Shiwen, Kasumi Ishikawa and Petrissa Solja are the nominees for the women’s division. 

Sohu Sports. Yesterday, ITTF announced the list of nominees for this year’s Table Tennis Star Awards. In the male category, Ma Long and Fan Zhendong, among others were nominated. 

Winning this year’s World Championships and World Cup, Ma Long is the most successful table tennis player in the men’s division for the year 2015. This achievement is recognised by the ITTF and included Ma Long as one of the nominees for the Best Male Table Tennis Star for 2015. 

Ma Long vs Fang Bo 2015 WTTC MS Finals 
video kindly shared by janus770

Ma Long vs Fan Zhendong 2015 World Cup Finals 
video kindly shared by janus770

Other nominees are Fan Zhendong of China, Jun Mizutani of Japan, and the GermanDimitrij Ovtcharov. 

Fan Zhendong vs Xu Xin 2015 Asian Championships MS Finals 
video kindly shared by janus770

Jun Mizutani vs D. Ovtcharov 2014 Grand Finals MS Finals 
video kindly shared by janus770

Dimitrij Ovtcharov vs M. Freitas 2015 European Games MS Finals 
video kindly shared by janus770

Of course, Ma Long is honoured to receive such recognition and hoped that he will be able to continue his wonderful performance this year into the future. 

As for the female category, Ding Ning, Kasumi Ishikawa, Liu Shiwen and Petrissa Solja made it into the shortlist. 

The winner will be announced during the ITTF Grand Finals in Lisbon, Portugal on December 9. 

Last year’s winners were Ding Ning and Quadri Aruna.

Li Xiaoxia Eliminated In The Sweden Open First Round

The Chinese Men’s Team imposed authority over their opponents in the opening round of the main draw of the Sweden Open Men’s Singles. At the end of the round, they all remained intact. This was not the case in the women’s division after Li Xiaoxia was eliminated in the opening round. Aside from her, Feng Tianwei also bid her farewell from the competition.  

ITTF. The 2015 Sweden Open started with their main draw today, November 13. In the Singles, the Grand Slam champion Li Xiaoxia was the biggest upset. 

The Chinese Team remained intact after the opening round of the main draw. The top seed Xu Xin scored 4-1 against Robin Devos (4-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-8, 11-5), while the defending champion Fan Zhendong swept Stephane Ouaiche in 4-0.  

The Grand Slam champion Zhang Jike had a good start in the competition. He swept Li Ahmet of Turkey in 11-5, 11-7, 11-6, 11-7. Other Chinese players Fang Bo, Yan Anand Liang Jingkun all posted their own victories in the competition.  

Michael Maze who have been missing in action, lost to Jens Lundqvist in 13-11,11-6, 10-12, 8-11, 3-11, 11-9, 7-11. 

Other winners in the competition are Yuya Oshima, Jun Mizutani, Chuang Chih Yuan, Marcos Freitas, among others. 

Masato Shiono was eliminated in the opening round after losing to Eugene Wang of Canada.  

Women’s Singles 

It is a huge victory for the Japanese qualifier Misako Wakamiya after she overcame the Grand Slam champion Li Xiaoxia in a full-stretch match. Wakamiya scored 11-6, 4-11, 6-11, 11-5, 1-11, 11-8, 11-8. 

The other Chinese players, Ding Ning, Mu Zi, Zhu Yuling, Liu Shiwen and Chen Mengall achieved victory in the round. Japanese Ai Fukuhara and Kasumi Ishikawa also posted their respective wins in the opening round. 

Aside from Li Xiaoxia, the women’s division had one more upset and she is Feng Tianwei who lost to Tetyana Bilenko in 11-6, 7-11, 11-6, 6-11, 11-6, 9-11, 5-11. 

Liu Guoliang Identifies Four Players For The Olympics

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Deciding on the lineup is aways not an easy job for the coaching staff of the Chinese Team. As of now, less than a year before the Olympics, the team still hasn’t decided on their Olympic lineup yet but Liu Guoliang knows who are those that have a chance to be in the biggest stage in table tennis. According to him, there are four players.  

Xinhua Net. The Olympic lineup of the Chinese Team is one of the most anticipated news in the table tennis world and Liu Guoliang identifies who are the strongest to be in such lineup. 

2015 is about to end which means that the 2016 Rio Olympics is fast approaching. At this time, some teams have already identified their Olympic lineup, but for the Chinese Team, deciding is not an easy task. 

Currently, Ma Long has the best condition among the Chinese players. This year he has won the World Championships and the World Cup. However, he hasn’t played in the Olympic Singles. In terms of experience and past results, Zhang Jike has it, after all he is the Grand Slam champion. However, his present condition is in question. 

“As Zhang Jike is facing problems in his condition, Ma Long performed with stability and that is very important for the team.” Liu Guoliang said. 

As for Xu Xin and Fan Zhendong, both haven’t won the World Championships yet. Xu Xin has won the World Cup while Fan Zhendong settled for the runner-up this year. Both players have shown good performances but the coaching staff needs more proof from them. 

“The four of them are still the most powerful players to compete for the Rio Olympics. I hope that each one of them can perform their full potential and be able to give their best efforts in less than a year. I hope that they will be able to show their fighting spirits and eventually realise their Olympic dreams.” Liu Guoliang concluded.