swept Wang Chuqin to reach the World Cup final for the fifth time, and Ma Long was also surprised by this result after the game
The 2024 ITTF Men's and Women's World Cup held the singles semifinals in Macao on the 20th. Among them, Ma Long 4-0 Wang Chuqin (11-9, 12-10, 11-6, 14-12), entered the World Cup men's singles final for the fifth time.
The veteran Marlon is not old
In the men's singles, the semi-finals of the upper half of the region were played against Wang Chuqin and Ma Long. The two have met three times in 2023, in the finals of the WTT Lanzhou Star Challenge and Macau Championships, as well as in the semi-finals of the World Table Tennis Championships in Durban, with Wang Chuqin winning all three matches.
The teammates are very familiar with each other, so the competition between the two sides in the first three boards after the start of the game is very fierce. In the first game, Ma Long showed a strong desire to attack, reversing the score in the middle of the game and taking the lead 11-9. The second game was even more ups and downs, Wang Chuqin felt more and more hot in the middle of the game, and took the lead in winning the game point 10-9 after falling behind 0-6. But Malone scored three key points in a row to complete the reversal 12-10 and lead 2-0.
Wang Chuqin lost to Ma Long for the first time in two years
In the third game, Malone maintained the advantage of the score from the beginning, and often hit a tricky angle return ball with his backhand, winning the third point 11-6.
Wang Chuqin couldn't find a way to break the game for a long time, and there was no way for him to retreat in the fourth game, so he had to give it a go. However, after the start of the fourth game, Wang Chuqin was still in a passive situation, and had to call a timeout when he fell behind 2-5. After the game resumed, Ma Long's scoring momentum continued unabated, and his forehand and backhand attacks flowed, always taking the advantage in his own hands, and taking the lead to get the match point 10-8.
Wang Chuqin decisively received the serve under high pressure and saved two match points. In the end, Malone was more patient in the stalemate stage and won the fourth game 14-12 with a difficult score of 4-0 to advance to the final.
For the prospect of the finals, Malone is full of confidence
When asked after the game about the secret of winning this game, the Dragons said: "Indeed, this result is beyond my imagination, because in the past two years, Wang Chuqin has basically lost. The main secret today is a good mentality, in fact, I was very relaxed from the beginning to the end today. Whether it's the beginning or the end, I think this is what I did better, and I think Wang Chuqin probably didn't think of this. ”
Regarding the outlook for the finals, Ma Long said: "I hope that I can relax in the final as I did today. ”