Fan Zhendong withdrew halfway, the reason was exposed, but netizens questioned why?

The WTT Doha Stars Challenge 2024 is coming to an end.

In the men's singles 1/4 finals, there is a game that everyone pays attention to, that is the match between Fan Zhendong and Lin Shidong.

Fan Zhendong is the world's No. 1 player in men's singles and the absolute main force of Chinese men's table tennis. Lin Shidong is a rookie in national table tennis, a star of hope, and is expected to become the backbone of national table tennis in the future.

Lin Shidong has always regarded Fan Zhendong as an idol. The two have also played against each other many times. Although Lin Shidong does not have a big gap, it is difficult to win the idol Fan Zhendong.

This time the two met again, and Lin Shidong defeated Fan Zhendong 3-2 and advanced to the men's singles semifinals. However, Lin Shidong did not defeat Fan Zhendong by his own strength, but Fan Zhendong temporarily withdrew and gave up the game. Lin Shidong was lucky to win this game.

When the two played, there were no signs. Fan Zhendong and Lin Shidong played four games and the battle was 2-2. The two had to go through the fifth game to separate the winners.

In this event, the live broadcast effect was very poor, the signal was often interfered with, and the game picture could not be seen clearly. The same is true of Lin Shidong's match with Fan Zhendong. Before the fifth game of the two of them was played, the referee suddenly announced that Lin Shidong had advanced. In the fifth game, Lin Shidong won 11:0.

After this result came out, many fans didn't quite understand. How could Fan Zhendong lose 0:11 to Lin Shidong? With his strength, it is impossible for Lin Shidong to shave his head. But the live broadcast screen at that time was very blurry, and everyone didn't know what was going on.

Later, someone posted the scene at that time. I saw the team doctor spraying reagents on Fan Zhendong's shoulder. It seems that Fan Zhendong's shoulder is uncomfortable. Although medical protection was done, it was not effective. Fan Zhendong probably felt uncomfortable playing and gave up the fifth game. The referee ruled that Lin Shidong defeated Fan Zhendong 3-2.

The incident caused an uproar online. Many netizens questioned Fan Zhendong, so much so that it was on the hot search.

Some people think that the first four games are fine. There were no accidents in the game, why did you choose to retire in the fifth game?

Some people feel that they retired in the fifth game, and there is a suspicion of negative withdrawal. They also cite Malone as an example. Even if Malone is tired enough to stand on the pile, he has to finish the game. Someone asked, "Isn't it more serious than a physical injury?"

Some people also feel that in this event, Fan Zhendong only participated in the men's singles competition. Some players have two or three games, but they have not withdrawn, Fan Zhendong only played one, how can he get injured? Is it afraid of losing, so he chooses to cheat the injury?

It's really all kinds of questioning words that come out.

At the same time, many netizens defended Fan Zhendong. Some netizens came up with evidence that as early as December last year, during the ITTF Mixed Team World Cup, Fan Zhendong had a shoulder injury.

When someone photographed Fan Zhendong waiting on the sidelines, he would massage his shoulder. At that time, he had a shoulder injury, but he kept playing, took on the singles load, and did a good job.

During the WTT Doha Men's Finals, Fan Zhendong partnered with Wang Chuqin in doubles. At that time, Fan Zhendong had knee problems. When he saved the ball, it hurt so much that he could barely get up, but he still kept playing.

In the men's singles 1/4 finals of the Doha Star Challenge, Fan Zhendong faced his fan brother Lin Shidong, who was eight years younger than him, and Fan Zhendong played four games with an injury. In the fifth game, if Fan Zhendong hadn't reached the point where he couldn't stick to the game, he wouldn't have chosen to retire. His body, he himself knows best. If you continue to play knowing that something is wrong with your body, it may aggravate your injury, and it will be more than worth the loss. Coupled with the fact that his opponent is a national table tennis teammate, he will not regret giving up the game. After all, it was the national table tennis players who advanced.

In fact, in the second half of 2022, Fan Zhendong's body had problems. He's already given up some games. Fan Zhendong is 27 years old, so he naturally wants to maintain a good body and play for a few more years. There's nothing wrong with that. Why should netizens question him?