In the early hours of this morning, Beijing time, the WTT regular challenge Doha station ended, the 42-year-old German veteran Boll and the 20-year-old Zhang Benzhihe fought hard for seven games, and finally defeated the opponent 4-3, which is also the first time that Boll won the men's singles championship of the WTT series.
In this regular challenge tournament in Doha, the Chinese table tennis team did not send players to participate in the singles, so many players from other associations are eyeing the championship trophy of this competition.
On Bol's way to qualify, he defeated Jang Yuzhen, Alamiyan, Lee Sang-so and Lim Yunru successively, and finally stood opposite Tomokazu Jang Ben, who was 22 years younger than him. Prior to this final, Bol was ranked 182nd in the world and Tomokazu Harimoto was ranked 11th.
In March this year, Bol will celebrate his 43rd birthday. The opponents on both sides of the table have changed several times, and he is still active in the international table tennis world. The increase in age did not have much of an impact on his competitive level, but the ensuing injuries still hindered his steps. Last year, Bol withdrew from the World Table Tennis Championships in Durban due to a shoulder injury, as well as WTT Xinxiang Station, Macau Station and many other events, which was also the main reason for his decline in ranking.
In this duel with Tomokazu Zhangmoto, Bol won extremely hard. The two sides battled seven games, and in the sixth game, Bol once fell behind 3-8, but he fought hard to catch up, completed a big reversal, won the sixth game 11-9, and then won the decisive game 11-8 in the deciding game. At this point, it had been seven years since he last won a tour event.
With his victory in Doha, Bol will climb back to 44th in the world rankings and become the oldest player in the top 50. The trophy will help Bol earn a direct place in the main draw of the Singapore Grand Slam in March. In addition, Bol has been selected into the German squad for the World Table Tennis Championships in Busan and is expected to play against the national table tennis team again.