I regret that I am sad to be out of the first and second rounds
At the beginning of May 2024, in the men's singles main draw of the WTT Saudi Arabia Grand Slam, Liang Jingkun, the "veteran" of the Chinese table tennis team, suffered another disappointing result. The main national table tennis player, who has won the third place in the men's singles at the World Table Tennis Championships for many consecutive years, lost 2-3 to Alamiyan from Iran in the second round and missed the promotion.
This is undoubtedly a heavy blow to Liang Jingkun, who has always been considered to be able to play well in the tournament. Prior to this, in the first round of singles, his teammates Wang Yidi and Qian Tianyi both played five games before narrowly winning, which shows that this game is not a light test for players. However, in the second round, Liang Jingkun was eliminated 2-3 after losing two games in a row while leading 2-1.
What's even more incredible is the performance of the tiebreaker. When Liang Jingkun fell behind 0-4, he completely lost his due calmness and concentration, and finally ended the game with a score of 5-11. As a top player in national table tennis, such an abnormality is really incomprehensible.
The reason for this may be that Liang Jingkun lacked the psychological quality he should have at a critical moment. Although the overall winning rate is high, he has to go through such an ordeal every time, and it is inevitable that he will consume too much physical energy and energy. When something goes wrong, it's often difficult for him to adjust his state in time, so he shows his feet at critical moments.
Such performance is undoubtedly the crux of Liang Jingkun's current predicament. After all, as a contender for a place in the men's team at the Olympics, he needs to be at his best at all times, and if something goes wrong, it may be difficult to gain the trust and reuse of the coaching staff.
Second, the Olympic dream may be shattered
This early exit at the WTT Saudi Arabia Grand Slam undoubtedly cast a shadow on Liang Jingkun's Olympic dream. As a veteran of national table tennis with a glorious history, Liang Jingkun naturally hopes to show his strength in the upcoming Paris Olympics and win glory for the country. However, the defeat cast a shadow over his Olympic journey.
Judging from the current situation, whether Liang Jingkun can be successfully selected for the Olympic men's team may be worried. After all, at the upcoming World Table Tennis Championships in Tokyo, he will need to prove his worth with a good performance to compete for that precious Olympic spot. However, the defeat in Saudi Arabia has clearly raised concerns about his form, and it is hard to imagine him making a significant change in form in a short period of time.
What's even more disappointing is that Liang Jingkun's performance in this competition is really incredible. As a top player in national table tennis, he lost his due calmness and concentration at a critical moment, and his performance in the decisive game was even more amateurish. If this state appears again at the World Table Tennis Championships and the Olympic Games, I am afraid that his Olympic dream will only come to naught.
For Liang, losing the opportunity to play the Olympics is undoubtedly a heavy blow. As a veteran with many years of experience in the national team, his desire and dedication to the tournament must be self-evident. However, if he fails to show the quality and form he deserves in the crucial moments to come, his Olympic dream may not be realized.
Of course, this is undoubtedly a difficult time for Liang. He needs to adjust his mental state as soon as possible, and try to recover his form in the next training and competitions, so as to lay a good foundation for his performance at the World Table Tennis Championships and the Olympic Games. Only then will he be able to finally achieve his Olympic dream.
Third, the coach also felt a headache and had nothing to do
Liang's defeat in the Saudi Grand Slam not only frustrated him, but also caused a headache for his head coach Liu Zhiqiang.
As the "veteran" of national table tennis, Liu Zhiqiang has always been Liang Jingkun's head coach. In the past many competitions, he has been acting as an off-court coach and witnessed countless glorious moments for Liang Jingkun. However, this time, the complete aberration in the tiebreaker also made people who had always complained about him feel a trace of sympathy.
Liu Zhiqiang has always had something to say about Liang Jingkun's game command. Someone once said that the feeling of watching him command Liang Jingkun is to "question Zhiqiang, understand Zhiqiang, and become Zhiqiang". This sense of contradiction can be seen, which is enough to show that Liang Jingkun, a "difficult" disciple, has always given Liu Zhiqiang a headache.
And this sudden aberration in the Saudi Arabia Grand Slam made Liu Zhiqiang feel helpless. In the deciding game, Liang Jingkun went from leading for a while to losing 6-11 in the end, and the whole process was like self-destructing his future. With such a performance, I am afraid that even Liu Zhiqiang, who has always been strict, will find it difficult to prescribe the right medicine.
Judging from the situation on the sidelines, when the game reached a critical moment, Liu Zhiqiang's expression had changed from the initial nervousness to the last helpless wry smile. This undoubtedly shows that as Liang Jingkun's head coach, he also feels very troubled and helpless about the students' disorders. After all, as the top main force of national table tennis, Liang Jingkun's performance is related to the future of the entire team.
For Liu Zhiqiang, it may be a very tricky thing to help Liang Jingkun regain his form. After all, Liang Jingkun's psychological problems have always plagued him and are difficult to solve easily. Coupled with the upcoming World Table Tennis Championships and the Olympic Games, time is becoming more and more urgent. It can be said that Liu Zhiqiang is undoubtedly facing a thorny problem at present.
Fourth, the future prospects are not optimistic
To sum up, Liang's early exit at the Saudi Grand Slam is undoubtedly a heavy blow to his Olympic dream. As a veteran of national table tennis who has won the third place in men's singles at the World Table Tennis Championships many times, Liang Jingkun is expected to win glory for the country again in the upcoming Paris Olympics. However, the defeat cast a shadow over his Olympic journey.
Liang Jingkun's complete aberration in the deciding game also gave his head coach Liu Zhiqiang a headache. As a strict coach, Liu Zhiqiang has always been the target of Liang Jingkun's "headache", and this gaffe at a critical moment made him feel helpless. It can be said that Liang Jingkun's defeat not only brought him frustration and disappointment, but also brought a lot of trouble to the coaching staff.
Looking to the future, Liang Jingkun will probably need to make great efforts if he wants to realize his Olympic dream. First of all, he must adjust his mental state as soon as possible and rebuild his condition in the next training and competitions to prepare for the World Table Tennis Championships and the Olympic Games. Secondly, he also needs to prove his strength and determination to the coaching staff, and win the trust and reuse of the coach. Only in this way can he finally be successfully selected for the Olympic men's team and realize his long-cherished Olympic wish.
However, Liang's current situation is indeed not optimistic. Especially in the face of the upcoming World Table Tennis Championships and the Olympic Games, time is very tight, and it is not easy to fully recover in a short period of time. Therefore, we can only hope that Liang Jingkun can adjust his form as soon as possible and regain his former style in the next competitions to earn himself a precious Olympic quota.
Of course, regardless of the final outcome, what Liang has accomplished in his past career is already admirable. As a veteran of national table tennis, he has created a glorious history at the World Table Tennis Championships and won countless honors for the country. These achievements are enough to prove his strength and determination, and I believe that as long as he can find his form again, he will definitely be able to win glory for his country.
Let's hope that Liang Jingkun can bounce back in the upcoming competitions, win a precious Olympic quota for himself, and finally realize his dream of the Paris Olympics!