On the evening of May 11, the WTT Saudi Grand Slam came to an end at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In the final finale of the men's singles finale, the world's No. 1 national table tennis player Wang Chuqin defeated Germany's Francesca 4-2 and was crowned the triple crown champion of the Grand Slam. It was his third title in this tournament. Previously, Wang Chuqin won the championship in the mixed doubles and men's doubles competitions.
As a leader in the "post-00s" of national table tennis, Wang Chuqin has made significant progress in recent years and has maintained a high external victory rate. In the last Olympic Games, Wang Chuqin traveled with the team as a substitute, although he did not get the opportunity to appear, but this baptism also gave him a head start in the Paris cycle. In the 27th week of the world ranking in 2023, Wang Chuqin surpassed Fan Zhendong for the first time and ascended to the throne of the world No. 1 in men's singles, becoming the first post-00 men's singles world No. 1 in history.
In the new cycle, after the tempering and baptism of the competition, Wang Chuqin's technical state has made a qualitative leap, and his comprehensive strength has steadily improved, and he is currently ranked first in the world rankings of men's singles, men's doubles, and mixed doubles, and now he has become the most dominant existence among the new generation of players.
After entering 2024, the burden on Wang Chuqin has become heavier. On May 7, the Chinese Table Tennis Association announced the quota for the mixed doubles and men's singles at the Paris Olympics. Wang Chuqin will join hands with Sun Yingsha to participate in the mixed doubles event, and the gold medal in the Olympic mixed doubles event is not only the ultimate goal of the "Shatou Combination", but also the determination of the entire national table tennis to win. In the men's singles event, Wang Chuqin won the men's singles quota with 22,425 points based on the comprehensive world ranking points and international competition bonus points. According to the relevant regulations, he has already qualified for the men's team and will compete in three Olympic Games in Paris.
The Grand Slam is the highest level of WTT and an important rehearsal before the Olympic Games. As the only model worker in the national table tennis this time, Wang Chuqin triumphantly entered the men's singles final all the way, facing the German star Francesca to win the championship. After six rounds of fierce battles, he defeated Francesca 4-2 and won the men's singles championship of this station. The scores were 11-2, 11-7, 11-5, 8-11, 10-12, 11-6 in six games.
It is worth mentioning that May 11 is Wang Chuqin's 24th birthday, and he finally won the mixed doubles, men's doubles, and men's singles championships, and the title of "Triple Crown" is undoubtedly his best birthday gift. Previously, Wang Chuqin partnered Ma Long to win the men's doubles title against Japan's Hayasuke Togami/Shinozuka Daito, and Sun Yingsha defeated Hong Kong's Wong Chun Ting/To Hoi Kim to win the mixed doubles title.
After the match, Wang Chuqin held out three fingers, expecting to do the same at the Paris Olympics. Wang Chuqin said frankly that this was a wonderful final, Francisco is one of the best players in the world, and I also watched his match with Zhang Yuzhen before the game, which was very exciting, and his performance in this game was very good. He said, "I thought before the game that it was going to be a tough game, the process was the same as I imagined, I had the lead in the first three games, and in the sixth game, I didn't rush and kept thinking of a way, and that's where I improved." ”
When talking about the motivation of the competition, Wang Chuqin believes that the event is a large-scale international event, and secondly, with his current ability and qualifications, every competition is important, because he wants to play well in every race. "I'm really happy, and I've always wondered if I can win the championship on my birthday, and I hope to survive until the last day, because everything is good." Wang Chuqin said.
Text/Beiqing Sports Zhou Xueshuai