The ITTF Singles World Cup men's singles 1/4 finals ushered in a national table tennis civil war, with Fan Zhendong facing Lin Gaoyuan.
The two have been team-mates for many years in the national team and have been team-mates at the club. The two have played many games, and they have won and lost each other, and Fan Zhendong has the advantage. Fan Zhendong is now 27 years old and ranked No. 2 in the world. Lin Gaoyuan is 29 years old and ranked 8th in the world. Both of them are in their prime.
If it is a personal achievement, Fan Zhendong must be far stronger than Lin Gaoyuan. Taking the singles World Cup as an example, Fan Zhendong has won the men's singles championship of the World Cup four times. Lin Gaoyuan didn't have a single time. Fan Zhendong has won three consecutive championships. If he can win the championship this time, Fan Zhendong will be able to achieve four consecutive championships, a very remarkable achievement. However, the internal competition of national table tennis has always been difficult to play, and the outcome is unpredictable. Many people say that the internal competition of national table tennis is much more difficult to play than the competition against foreign associations.
In this event, Lin Gaoyuan defeated the fierce general Darko 4-2, showing a high competitive state. Fan Zhendong narrowly defeated Lin Shidong 4-3 and advanced to the quarterfinals with difficulty.
During the game, Fan Zhendong was injured unexpectedly and still insisted on playing. Lin Gaoyuan defeated Fan Zhendong 4-2 to advance to the men's singles semifinals and play the semifinals with Tomokazu Zhangmoto.
In the first game, Lin Gaoyuan made a 4:1 start. Fan Zhendong chased to 4:5 and only fell behind by 1 point. Lin Gaoyuan scored 3 points in a row, and the difference reached 4 points. The two sides fell into a stalemate, scoring 2 points each, and Lin Gaoyuan won the first game 11:7.
In the second game, Lin Gaoyuan took a 4:3 lead. Fan Zhendong scored 3 points in a row to overtake. Lin Gaoyuan fought successfully, and the score became 5:6. Fan Zhendong scored 3 points in a row to stretch the difference to 4 points. Lin Gao scored far away, and the score became 6:9. Fan Zhendong increased the quality of the offense, scored 2 points in a row, and pulled back a game 11:6.
In the third game, the two sides were again locked in a stalemate. The two are too familiar, and there are no secrets about their skills and tactics, and they know how to deal with them. However, in the middle game, Lin Gaoyuan scored consecutive points and took a 6:3 lead. Fan Zhendong returned the ball and wiped the net out of bounds. Lin Gaoyuan won the game point at 10:4. Fan Zhendong chased 1 point. Fan Zhendong suddenly approached the referee and said that he had a problem with his hand and needed to take a timeout. Fan Zhendong applied for a medical suspension.
The team doctor helped Fan Zhendong massage his hands. Later, the referee asked Fan Zhendong what was going on. Fan Zhendong said that his arm suddenly went numb and felt a little pain. After the team doctor helped Fan Zhendong massage for a while, Fan Zhendong continued to play. Fan Zhendong scored 2 points in a row to narrow the gap again. Lin Gaoyuan swung short, and Fan Zhendong did not catch the ball well. Lin Gaoyuan won the game 11:7. Fan Zhendong suffered an unexpected injury to his arm, which may affect the trend.
In the fourth game, Fan Zhendong took a 6:2 lead. The two started fighting, and Lin Gaoyuan chased 1 point. Fan Zhendong suddenly called a timeout again. It's rare to chase 1 point, and call a timeout when you're still 2 points ahead. Maybe Fan Zhendong still feels uncomfortable. In the second game, Fan Zhendong was like a god and won the game 11:6.
The big score was 2-2.
In the fifth game, Fan Zhendong made a 7:0 start. After both sides scored 1 point each, Fan Zhendong took an 8:1 lead. Lin Gaoyuan scored 8 points in a row to overtake the score. Lin Gaoyuan won the game 12:10. It seems that Fan Zhendong's arm injury has affected his performance.
In the sixth game, Fan Zhendong made a 3:1 start. Lin Gaoyuan scored 6 points in a row to overtake the score. Lin Gaoyuan won the game 11:7.
Lin Gaoyuan defeated Fan Zhendong 4-2 and faced Ku Zhihe in the semifinals.
In the men's singles final of the 2018 ITTF Tour Finals, Lin Gaoyuan lost 1-4 to Japan's Tomokazu Zhangmoto and was runner-up.
In the men's singles final of the WTT Championships in July 2022, Lin Gaoyuan was defeated by Zhang Benzhihe in four consecutive games after winning three games first, and Lin Gaoyuan was once again relegated to the runner-up.
These two games seriously affected Lin Gaoyuan, his confidence was damaged, and the national table tennis coaching staff did not trust him very much.
The latter result is difficult to say. Will it be beneficial to Tomokazu Zhangmoto?