On April 30, Beijing time, the International Table Tennis Federation announced the world ranking of table tennis players for the 18th week of 2024.
The World Table Tennis Federation (WTT) Saudi Arabia Grand Slam will kick off on May 1, and almost all of the world's top players are preparing for the tournament. Apart from a few WTT Junior tournaments in the past week, there have been no major events. However, due to the expiration of the points for the 2023 WTT Star Challenge Thailand, Lin Gaoyuan and Chen Xingtong were both "triple crowns" at that time, of which Lin Gaoyuan defeated Zhang Yuzhen to win the men's singles championship, and also partnered with Lin Shidong to win the men's doubles championship, and also partnered with Chen Xingtong to win the mixed doubles championship, Chen Xingtong defeated Zhu Qianxi to win the women's singles championship, and at the same time partnered with Kuo Man to win the women's doubles championship, and also won the mixed doubles championship with Lin Gaoyuan. So this week, their 600 championship points have been deducted, and the latest points ranking has also changed somewhat.
Men's singles
Four national table tennis players Wang Chuqin, Fan Zhendong, Ma Long, and Liang Jingkun are firmly in the top four in the men's singles world. After deducting 600 points, Lin Gaoyuan was overtaken by Felix Lebrun and temporarily ranked 6th.
This week's top 10 men's singles are: 1.Wang Chuqin, 2.Fan Zhendong, 3.Ma Long, 4.Liang Jingkun, 5.Felix Lebrun, 6.Lin Gaoyuan, 7.Lin Yunru, 8.Hugo Calderano, 9.Tomokazu Zhangmoto, 10.Qiu Dang.
Zhang Yuzhen, the men's singles runner-up at last year's Thailand Star Challenge, has 420 points due this week, and her ranking has slipped from 11th to 20th. Omar Assal reached No. 13, setting a new career high.
Other national table tennis players ranked: Lin Shidong 15th, Zhou Qihao 24th, Xiang Peng 41st.
As a key training object of national table tennis, Lin Shidong has won many opportunities to participate in WTT Championships, Grand Slams and other competitions, and has more opportunities than Lin Gaoyuan, who is in the top ten in the world, but has been tepid, and has not made a major breakthrough in his results. Even though Fan Zhendong was eliminated at the Singapore Grand Slam this year, he was immediately taught a lesson by the 43-year-old veteran Bol. In the upcoming WTT Saudi Arabia Grand Slam, Lin Shidong is still among them, can he make a breakthrough to prove himself?
Women's singles
The "Four Golden Flowers" of national table tennis Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Wang Yidi, and Chen Meng are firmly in the top four in the women's singles world. Chen Xingtong's 600 points expired, and the latest effective points were overtaken by Hina Hayata, temporarily ranking 6th. Hina Hayada moved up one spot to No. 5.
Diaz, the semi-finalist of last year's Thailand Star Challenge, has 210 points due this week, and his latest ranking has dropped two places to 11th in the top 10. Szokos moved up to 9th and Mimato Ito returned to the top 10. Since then, in the top 10 of the women's singles world, in addition to the national table tennis monopoly with 5 seats, the Japanese women's team has also occupied 3 seats.
This week's top 10 women's singles in the world are: 1. Sun Yingsha, 2. Wang Manyu, 3. Wang Yidi, 4. Chen Meng, 5. Hina Hayata, 6. Chen Xingtong, 7. Shin Yubin, 8. Miwa Zhangmoto, 9. Szokos, 10. Misei Ito.
Zhu Qianxi, the runner-up in the women's singles at last year's Thailand Star Challenge, has 420 points due this week, dropping seven places to No. 21, while her teammate Tian Zhixi has risen two places to No. 15 in the world. Who will qualify for the second singles Olympics in Paris? The competition between the two is heating up.
Sweden's Linda Bergström moved up one spot to No. 27, setting a new career high.
Ranking of table tennis players in other countries: Kuo Man is 22nd, Qian Tianyi is 25th, He Zhuojia is 43rd, Li Yake is 45th, and Shi Xunyao is 46th.
The WTT Saudi Arabia Grand Slam is particularly important for Qian Tianyi. Qian Tianyi has been surpassed by Kuo Man, who is 4 years younger than him, and his ranking in the national table tennis women's singles player has fallen to 7th. Previously, she was able to compete with Chen Xingtong for some important tournaments when she was in the top 10, but if she had been left behind Kuaiman, her chances of competing would only become less and less, and she would gradually be marginalized. Therefore, Qian Tianyi must seize this Saudi Grand Slam to gain points, and the semi-finals should be her minimum goal, and it is best to return to the top 10 in the world.
Men's Doubles
Fan Zhendong/Wang Chuqin ranked first in men's doubles with 4425 points. The second and third places are the two Korean pairs of Jang Woo-jin/Lim Joong-hoon and Lim Joong-hoon/Ahn Jae-hyun. Fourth place went to Ma Long/Lin Gaoyuan, while the "Shuanglin" pair Lin Gaoyuan/Lin Shidong have 600 points due and have dropped two places to fifth this week.
Women's Doubles
South Korea's Tian Zhixi/Shin Yubin ranked No. 1 in the women's doubles world with 4,520 points. The two pairs of national table tennis pairs Chen Meng/Wang Manyu and Chen Meng/Wang Yidi ranked second and third respectively. Chinese Taipei's Zheng Yijing/Li Yuzhen slipped to fourth place due to the expiration of 420 points.
Mixed doubles
The mixed doubles world top 10 rankings remained unchanged this week, with the top three being the national table tennis pair of Sun Yingsha/Wang Chuqin, Korea's Lim Joong-hoon/Shin Yubin, and Japan's Tomokazu Zhangmoto/Hina Hayata.