The alarm bell of the national table tennis men's team rang for a long time, and Wang Hao needed to regain his strength
In the men's singles round of the table tennis WTT Saudi Arabia Grand Slam on May 7, 2024, Ma Long, the main force of national table tennis, lost 0-3 to South Korean player Zhang Yuzhen, and was swept 13-11, 6-11, 8-11 and missed the round of 16. This is already the main player of the national table tennis men's team after Liang Jingkun and Lin Gaoyuan. Ma Long's defeat once again sounded the alarm of the national table tennis, the national table tennis men's team in the world table tennis dominance is far less than the women's team, and the recent frequent losses to foreign association players in the competition show that the national table tennis men's team is facing severe challenges.
Malone's fiasco was undoubtedly a blow to him. As the number one player of the national table tennis men's team, Ma Long has always been the mainstay of the team. He is skilled, experienced and calm, and is at the heart of the team's success. In this Grand Slam, Malone unexpectedly collapsed, not only missing the round of 16, but also showing many problems in the game. The quality of his serve is not high, and he is often pinned down by his opponents in his return shots; His fitness doesn't seem to be ideal, either, and he often shows fatigue first in long tug-of-wars. This is a sign that Malone is far from his peak and needs to adjust further to regain his strength.
The successive exits of Liang Jingkun and Lin Gaoyuan, coupled with Ma Long's fiasco, made the performance of the national table tennis men's team in this Grand Slam a mess. This is already the second collective defeat of the national table tennis men's team in the major competition after the 2022 World Cup. If this situation continues, it will greatly shake the dominance of the national table tennis men's team in the world table tennis arena.
In recent years, the performance of the national table tennis men's team in the competition has indeed been unsatisfactory. The national table tennis women's team is much more dominant, not only has they repeatedly won all the gold medals in the Olympics, World Cup and other major competitions, but they are also winner-take-all in various world tours. However, the national table tennis men's team frequently lost to players from other associations in the same period, which is no longer an exception, but a general trend.
The reason for this is mainly because the strength of the men's team of the foreign association has been improving in recent years. In the past, although the national table tennis men's team occasionally lost to players from other associations in major competitions, it was more of a personal abnormality. But now the situation is different, the overall strength of the men's team of the foreign association has improved, so that they are no longer suppressed by the national table tennis men's team as in the past, but have shown stronger competitiveness on many occasions.
For example, in this Grand Slam, in addition to Ma Long, Liang Jingkun and Lin Gaoyuan were defeated by players from Germany and Japan respectively; In the previous games, Fan Zhendong, Zhou Yu and others also lost to players from other associations at critical moments. These foreign association players not only have excellent personal skills, but more importantly, their psychological quality and tactical awareness have been greatly improved, so that they are no longer passively beaten on the court as before, but take the initiative to attack and attack actively, thus forcing the national table tennis men's team into a desperate situation.
In the face of this grim situation, the head coach of the national team, Wang Hao, needs to pay close attention to this red flag and go all out to prepare for the upcoming Paris Olympics. As the supreme leader of the national table tennis, Wang Hao must find out the reasons for the frequent losses of the national table tennis men's team and take decisive and effective measures to solve this problem.
Wang Hao needs to make a comprehensive assessment and adjustment of the player's psychological state. Many times, the defeat of players is often due to psychological problems, such as lack of self-confidence, high psychological pressure of opponents, etc. Wang Hao needs to organize psychological experts to tailor psychological counseling programs for each player's characteristics to help them build firm confidence in defeating all opponents.
Wang Hao needs to improve the technical and tactical level of the players in an all-round way. By analyzing the performance of the players in the game, Wang Hao needs to find out their shortcomings in terms of technology and tactics, and correct them in time. Wang Hao also needs to study and analyze the characteristics of the playing style of players in foreign associations, and prescribe the right medicine for the national table tennis players, so as to reverse the situation of passive beating.
Wang Hao needs to pay enough attention to the physical condition of the players. Table tennis is extremely physically demanding on players, and if they are not in good physical condition, it will be difficult to perform at the level they should on the field. Wang Hao needs to organize a professional physical fitness team to conduct a detailed test of each player's physical condition, and formulate a scientific training plan to ensure that the players can participate in the game in the best condition.
Wang Hao needs to reshape the overall atmosphere of the national table tennis men's team. The recent losing streak will undoubtedly put a lot of psychological pressure on the team, and if this atmosphere continues, it will further affect the team's morale and form. Wang Hao needs to inject new positive energy into the team through various ways, so that all team members can put down their burdens and devote themselves to the work of preparing for the Olympic Games.