Fan Jindong defeated Ahn Jae-hyun 3-0
In the men's singles round of 16 of the 2024 WTT Saudi Arabia Grand Slam, Chinese star Fan Zhendong swept South Korea's Ahn Jae-hyun with a score of 3-0, with a score of 11-9, 11-4, 11-4 in three games, and successfully advanced to the top 8.
Fan Zhendong played well in this match, especially the forward spin serve put a lot of pressure on his opponent. His serve has a lot of spin and is well positioned, which makes Ahn Jae-hyun often feel poor when receiving serves. At the same time, Fan Zhendong's backhand performance was also very good, and he was able to hit the ball flat and straight when he returned, causing great trouble for the opponent. On the offensive end, Fan Jindong is free, his forehand is full of power, fast ball speed and varied spin, which makes Ahn Jae-hyun suffer a lot on the backhand.
Fan Zhendong attacked aggressively and defended solidly in this game, except for a slightly tense start of the game, he played quite well in the other two games. After the game, Fan Zhendong also spoke highly of his performance, believing that this was a good reflection of his recent form.
The national table tennis men's singles situation
In this Grand Slam, the Chinese men's singles lineup can be described as a gathering of heroes. In addition to Fan Zhendong, Ma Long, Lin Gaoyuan, Liang Jingkun and others are also the favorites for the championship. But what people didn't expect was that Ma Long, Lin Gaoyuan and Liang Jingkun were eliminated in the round of 16 and the top 8 one after another, making Fan Zhendong the biggest hope for the Chinese men's singles championship.
Malone is the defending champion of this Grand Slam, but he was eliminated 2-4 in the round of 16 against German dark horse Ocharov. Lin Gaoyuan was also eliminated in the first round, losing 3-4 to Japan's Tomokazu Haramoto. Although Liang Jingkun successfully advanced to the top 8, in the match with Swedish star Falke, he failed to seize the opportunity in the tiebreaker after a 3-3 draw, and finally lost 3-4.
The successive exits of the three main players of national table tennis undoubtedly put great pressure on Fan Zhendong. But it also opened up a smoother path for him to win the championship. As the top singles player in the Chinese table tennis world, Fan Zhendong will bear the heavy responsibility of winning the national table tennis championship. He will need to maintain a high level of performance in the following competitions in order to finally win the championship.
The Road to Glory
For Fan Zhendong, the 2024 WTT Saudi Arabia Grand Slam can be described as significant. As one of the highest-level tournaments in table tennis, winning a Grand Slam championship will be the greatest affirmation and glory of his career.
Over the past few years, Fan has won a number of major tournaments, but the Grand Slam title is still out of reach. In 2021, he lost to Malone in the final of the Houston Grand Slam, and in 2022, he was defeated by Lin Gaoyuan in the semifinals. In last year's Qatar Grand Slam, Fan Zhendong once again stopped in the semifinals. Despite being one of the top players in the world, a Grand Slam title is still an important honour he craves the most.
Now, with the successive outs of old opponents such as Ma Long, Lin Gaoyuan, and Liang Jingkun, Fan Zhendong finally ushered in an excellent opportunity to realize his dream of winning the championship. As long as he can maintain his current form and stick to his offensive style of play, he is expected to forge his own "road to glory" in this Grand Slam. For the 28-year-old, this could be his last and best chance to win a Grand Slam title.