On April 8, Xiang Peng, who has the title of Zhang Jike's successor, celebrated his 19th birthday, and he was also a star of hope for national table tennis born in 2003. At the same time as Xiang Peng's birthday, it has also once again triggered the outside world's thinking and speculation, that is, whether Liu Guoliang and the coaching staff will give Xiang Peng a chance to participate in the Asian Games. The national table tennis men's team currently has the last 1 place left, and Lin Gaoyuan, Xu Xin and Xiang Peng are considered to have the most chances. Due to the long-term need to prepare for the Olympic Games, Liu Guoliang is likely to use Xiang Peng to participate in the Asian Games to get exercise, and Xu Xin and Liu Shiwen have the possibility of being abandoned.
Although Xiang Peng is only 19 years old, he has been famous for a long time, and after his debut, he is expected to become Zhang Jike's successor. Zhang Jike also praised his descendant and once encouraged Xiang Peng. Although he did not perform well at the Singapore Grand Slam, Xiang Peng is undoubtedly the leader of the 03 generation of national table tennis, and in time, he still has a good chance to become the core player of national table tennis. Liu Guoliang and Qin Zhijian's intention to exercise Xiang Peng is also very obvious, and they will give Xiang Peng a chance in many competitions. Xiang Peng himself is also very competitive, and has beaten Wang Chuqin twice in singles and doubles in the Oman Challenge.
At present, the national table tennis men's team has confirmed that there are a total of 4 people participating in the Asian Games, namely Fan Zhendong, Ma Long, Liang Jingkun and Wang Chuqin, and the last place remaining is pending. According to the previous regulations of the Chinese Table Tennis Association, the remaining 1 place will be discussed and decided by the coaching team, in addition to referring to the results of the past two years, it will also be considered from the perspective of preparing for the next two Olympic Games. In other words, national table tennis will not only focus on the next Olympic Games, but also start the preparation for the 2028 Olympic Games in advance. This means that young players are likely to get more opportunities to exercise at this Asian Games.
Because of this, many voices are optimistic about Xiang Peng's participation in the Asian Games. After all, Xiang Peng meets the requirements of the long-term preparation for the 2028 Olympic Games from the age, and in the case of Fan Zhendong, Ma Long, Liang Jingkun and Wang Chuqin in the national table tennis, it is completely possible to send a young player to feel the atmosphere of the competition and get exercise, without the need to send Xu Xin or Lin Gaoyuan. Wang Chuqin will definitely have many doubles in this competition, including mixed doubles with Sun Yingsha, so Xu Xin can go or not. The same line of thinking, Liu Shiwen may also be abandoned at the same time.
Of course, making such a decision requires Liu Guoliang to be very bold, after all, it means giving up Xu Xin and Liu Shiwen, two veterans. But competitive sports are like this, and the replacement of old and new is also common for national table tennis. National table tennis to consider the 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games, in the case of already core players to add insurance to the champions, it is also reasonable to send young players. Therefore, Xiang Peng, Wang Yidi and Chen Xingtong are optimistic about getting the remaining quota for the Asian Games. Xu Xin and Liu Shiwen's decline in the team's order, coupled with their age, put them at a disadvantage.
Of course, in the end, whether Liu Guoliang will do this depends on the results of the discussion of the national table tennis coaching team. Compared with the national table tennis women's team, the replacement speed of the men's team's new and old is originally slow, and Liu Guoliang and Qin Zhijian will definitely consider this problem. Xiang Peng is also 19 years old, when will he stay longer without exercising at this time? Perhaps at this year's Asian Games, we can see young players such as Xiang Peng and Wang Chuqin shining brightly.