Japan End China’s Long Reign in Asian Games Men’s Table Tennis
Sports Correspondent: Imran Sohail
Japan defeated China 3-2 in a closely contested men’s team table tennis final at the Asian Games, ending China’s 32-year winning streak in the event.
China had won the men’s team gold medal at every Asian Games since 1994. However, Japan secured the title after Sora Matsushima defeated Wen Ruibo in the deciding match.
Tomokazu Harimoto was also part of Japan’s victorious team. After the historic win, Harimoto said the result showed that Japan had overcome a lack of confidence when facing China.
Japan took the contest to a deciding match after Harimoto defeated China’s world number-one player Wang Chuqin 3-0. Wang had earlier beaten Matsushima in the opening match.
“I’m happy, but looking at the actual contest, there was nothing unusual about the way we played,” Harimoto said.
He added that confidence had been the main factor missing from Japan in previous encounters with China.
Japan entered the final with two players ranked among the world’s top five, with Matsushima at number three and Harimoto at number four. China’s lineup included Wang, Lin Shidong and Wen Ruibo, ranked first, eighth and 15th respectively.
Harimoto said Japan’s stronger presence among the world’s leading players had helped the team compete more effectively against China.
After leveling the final at 2-2, Harimoto chose not to return to the bench for the decisive match. He said it was partly due to superstition and that he did not want Matsushima to feel any additional pressure.
China’s Wang acknowledged that he faced psychological difficulties during his match against Harimoto, saying the team may have rushed some shots while trying to improve their performance.
China later defeated Japan 3-0 in the women’s team final.
The men’s defeat ended China’s long-standing dominance in the Asian Games event and prompted mixed reactions among Chinese fans on social media, with some users raising concerns about the team’s future depth and development of new players.
