In the early morning of May 7, 2024, the national table tennis in the Saudi Arabian Grand Slam suffered an unprecedented Waterloo. Following Liang Jingkun, Wang Manyu, and Lin Gaoyuan successively defeated, our dragon team, Ma Long, also lost to South Korean star Zhang Yuzhen with a score of 0-3 in this game. The result of this match undoubtedly surprised all fans, after all, in the past three meetings, Malone has won the game. So, is Lian quite old, or is Ma Long's technology backward and has no advantage?
Before the start of the game, fans were full of expectations for Ma Long. After all, as the world's third-ranked player, Ma Long's strength and experience are unquestionable. And his opponent Zhang Yuzhen, although he is also a strong player, is still a little immature compared with Ma Long. Therefore, when the two stood on the field, everyone felt that it was a game without suspense.
However, after the start of the game, Zhang Yuzhen showed a very good form. He has a very high quality return and a very good forehand scoring ability. In the face of such an opponent, Ma Long seems to be a little uncomfortable, although his rhythm changes a lot, but he is not dominant in the stalemate. In the first game, Ma Long once led 7-5, but he failed to grasp the game point at the critical moment and was won by Zhang Yuzhen 13-11.
In the second game, Ma Long's state still did not improve. He seems to be affected by his age and competitive form, and it is difficult for him to maintain a high level of performance for a long time. And Zhang Yuzhen became more and more courageous, leading the way in an all-round way, winning another game 11-6. At this time, Malone was already 0-2 behind, and the situation was precarious.
In the third game, Malone went all out to try to save the defeat. But Zhang Yuzhen didn't give him much of a chance, and with his excellent technical and tactical literacy, he ended the match 11-8, and finally defeated Ma Long with a score of 3-0 to advance to the men's singles round of 16.
The result of this game shocked and lamented everyone. After all, in the past three encounters, Ma Long has easily defeated Zhang Yuzhen. And this loss not only affected Ma Long's world ranking, but also cast a shadow on the prospects of national table tennis in the Saudi Arabia Grand Slam.
So, what exactly caused Malone to lose this game? Is it because Lian is quite old, or is the technology backward and has no advantage?
Judging from the course of the game, Ma Long's form has indeed been affected. His pace is not as flexible as before, and his reaction speed has decreased. This may be due to age and injuries that prevent him from being able to maintain a high level of fitness for a long time. In addition, Zhang Yuzhen's outstanding performance also put a lot of pressure on Ma Long. He needs to adapt to the rhythm and tactics of his opponents in a short period of time, which is not easy for a veteran.
Of course, the technical aspects cannot be ignored. While Malone still has excellent technical and tactical qualities, he may need more innovation and change against a young player like Zhang Yuzhen. In the stalemate, Ma Long needs to make better use of his experience and skills to suppress his opponent, rather than reacting passively.
In general, Ma Long's loss was not because Lian was old or had no advantage due to backward technology. It's because he was affected in many ways in the game, which led to poor form. As a veteran, Malone needs to better adjust his form and mentality to cope with future matches. At the same time, the national table tennis also needs to seriously summarize the lessons of this game and make full preparations for the next games.
The Saudi Grand Slam is still going on, and other players in the national table tennis also need to work hard to achieve good results in the next competitions. As one of the leaders of national table tennis, Ma Long needs to lead by example and lead the team out of the trough and meet new challenges. We believe that in the near future, Ma Long and the national table tennis will once again show their strong strength and style!