There are many classic sayings circulating in the table tennis world, one of which is "marry Liu Guozheng when you marry someone." "Let's talk about (revisiting) this classic battle that is destined to go down in history. In the eyes of the sixth person, Liu Guozheng's game not only saved 7 match points, but also saved the future of 2 people.
A brief retrospective of the competition process:
In the semi-finals of the men's team at the 46th World Championships in 2001, Chinese men's table tennis played against Korean men's table tennis. At that time, the single-set match adopted a 3-set 2-win system, the first set, Liu Guozheng won the opening red 2-0, the second set, Kong Linghui lost 0-2, the third set, Ma Lin 2-0 and then the next city, the fourth set, Kong Linghui state dropped 0-2 and lost. In the first four sets of the game, the two sides fought 2-2, of which the absolute main force Kong Linghui lost 2 sets, and the Chinese team fell into an unprecedented desperate situation, and if they lost another set, they could go home.
In the decider, youngster Liu Guozheng played against Kim Taek-so, who had just won Kong Linghui in the second set. The latter was full of momentum, the scene was full of wind and water, the first set was 21-16 to take the lead, the second set, Liu Guozheng re-launched, but in the second half of the Kim Sawa-so attack, the game was difficult to solve, the score you chased me, and finally Liu Guozheng won a set back with a difficult 24-22.
In the third set, Kanazawa Soo always suppressed Liu Guozheng on the scene and took a 19-15 lead, many fans thought that the Chinese team was not far from losing, but Liu Guozheng showed a big heart at the critical time, steadily and steadily played to tie the score, 20-19 Kanazawa Soo took the lead in getting the match point, and then Liu Guozheng equalized to save the first match point, and then the score fell into a stalemate, Liu Guozheng always gritted his teeth and insisted, and the final score was fixed at 25-23! Liu Guozheng saved a total of 7 match points to win the game, pulling the Chinese team back from the edge of the cliff.
In the whole game, Liu Guozheng won 2 points alone, becoming the biggest contributor to the team's victory. At the moment of winning, Liu Guozheng fell to the ground excitedly, and Liu Guoliang, Kong Linghui and Ma Lin entered the stadium to celebrate this gripping victory. Cai Zhenhua, the head coach of the men's team outside the field, was even more excited, and he clapped with the players one by one to celebrate the victory, and also specially hugged Liu Guozheng, very satisfied with the performance of the beloved disciple.
That moment has become a classic memory for many fans. In the subsequent men's team final, the Chinese men's table tennis was unstoppable to lift the Svethlin Cup again. "Marry Liu Guozheng", this classic saying has become the best praise for him by fans.
The sixth person believes that this ball can be called one of the most classic battles in the history of national table tennis, and it has also become the most impressive big reversal battle in the minds of many fans. Liu Guozheng has since become a blockbuster and has become a household star player.
In fact, that game was significant, saving not only 7 match points, but also 2 people. The first person to save is Coach Cai Zhenhua, as the main coach, Cai Zhenhua is very aware of the strategic significance of this ball, the Chinese team that has just risen from the trough period cannot afford to lose, opponents all over the world are staring at us, can only win and can not lose! Losing Cai Zhenhua will bear heavy public opinion pressure and mental blows. Because table tennis has been defined as our national ball.
Why Liu Guozheng became the "head coach" of Chinese men's table tennis for a while, in fact, Cai Zhenhua valued Liu Guozheng's heroic performance in the past few years, not everyone can do it!
During that special period, Liu Guozheng led the team to win the Svethrin Cup again, and the Chinese team achieved the 9th consecutive championship of the men's team.
The second person saved was Kong Linghui, the main player at the time, who won anything to say, if he lost, Kong Linghui, who lost 2 points, will inevitably become the "sinner" of the team's loss. As a Grand Slam winner, he did not contribute to the team, but pulled his hind legs, and no one could bear the discussion behind it. To some extent, without Liu Guozheng's strength to turn the tide, Kong Linghui is likely not to become the future women's table tennis coach.
As a former outstanding athlete, Liu Guozheng never dropped the chain at a critical time and made outstanding contributions to national table tennis. Thick and low-key, he still insists on paying silently in the front line of table tennis, and still becomes the beam of national table tennis at key times. At present, Liu Guo is serving as the leader of the men's first team, and we wish and look forward to his future getting better and better.