Table Tennis only came into the Olympic fold in 1988 and the sport has seen Chinese domination unlike any in the world.
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Table Tennis is a unique sport that involves tremendous skill, discipline and high levels of concentration. It makes a player nimble footed, makes his wrists incredibly agile and also enhances hand-eye co-ordination in a better way. Table Tennis as a sport was actually a past-time for British officers in the 1860s and was primarily used as entertainment after dinner service. Known as Ping Pong, Table Tennis as a sport grew in popularity and in 1926, it was formalized under the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF). After 62 years, Table Tennis finally came into the Olympic fold. However, 28 years prior to 1988, it was included in the 1960 Rome Paralaympics.
In this sport, we have seen the domination of China in full flow. Be it for gold, silver, bronze, world championship events anywhere in the world, China is the undisputed leader of the sport. Take this stat into account. In any top 10 list, seven out of the 10 top ten players are all from China. India, which has made some decent strides in the last couple of years, has also established some great players. Here is a list of the best Table Tennis players from all over the world and also from India.
World Junior Champion. Gold in the Asian Games. Gold in the Olympic Games. World Championship Winner. Grand Slam Winner. No.1 player. If these are not the traits of a true great, then one wonders what is. Ma Longs from China is currently the longest reigning male world number 1 table tennis player of all time as he has held the title for over 30 months now since March 2015 when he was previously ranked number 2. Long holds a record of winning five ITTF Pro Tour Tournaments in a row with a winning streak of 35 sets in a row. Ma Long is the fifth player to achieve a grand slam – which is the Olympics, World Cup and World Championships. Truly phenomenal.
The only player to make Ma Long look mortal. Wang Liqin is a three-time world champion, a bronze medalist in the singles competition in the 2004 Anthems Olympics and a gold medalist from the doubles at the Sydney Olympics in 2000. He also won the gold medal in team competition alongside Wang Hao and Ma Lin. Between 2004 and 2006, he also held the No.1 ranking for 25 months.
A former world champion in the shadow of Ma Long and Wang Liqin, Xu Xin has defeated Long once but the world champion got it back. Such was the depth of talent in the Chinese contingent that when he defeated Long in the Japan Open, he still did not qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics. Xu Xin has won the world tour ten times, he’s a back to back winner of the World Tour Grand Finals in 2012 and 2013, won the Asian Cup twice in 2013 and 2016, and is a two-time semi-finalist at the world championship.
One of the best female Table Tennis player of all time but she could give even the men a run for the money. Guo Yue achieved two Olympic Gold medals and two bronzes in her active career making a total of four medals. Guo also won the bronze medal in the singles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and then went on to become the Asian Cup Champion and world table tennis women’s team champion in the same year. Prior to that in 2007, she won herself the women’s singles and mixed doubles title at the world table tennis championship.
But before Guo Yue, the greatest female Table Tennis player if not the best in the sport is Deng Yaping. Her record of four Olympic gold medals might never ever be broken. Deng Yaping won the women’s double gold medal in 1989 commemorating the 40th World Table Tennis Championship and then the women’s team gold medal at the 4th Table Tennis World Cup in 199. In addition to that, she won the women’s single gold medal twice again at the 42nd and 43rd World Table Tennis Championship in 1994 and 1995 respectively.
India is also producing great talent in the sport although it is not on level terms with China. In the last couple of seasons, we have seen some fantastic talent emerging out and here are the best players from the country.
Perhaps the most famous name to have come out of India is Achanta Sharath Kamal. He is the only Indian to have won a title in the ITTF circuit. He has won the gold medal in the 2006, 2010 and 2018 Commonwealth Games in both the singles and the doubles. Sharath Kamal is the first Indian table tennis player ever to become nine times Senior National Champion hence breaking the record of eight National Champion titles previously held by Kamlesh Mehta. Without doubt, Sharath Kamal remains one of the ultimate medal hopefuls heading into Tokyo 2021.
Manika Batra rose to prominence in the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast when she won the gold medal in both the team and the singles event. Her stock only rose when she secured the bronze medal in the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta. Although she failed to qualify for Tokyo 2021, her future still remains bright.
Mouma Das is probably the player from India who put the country on the international Table Tennis map with her consistent performances in the early part of the millennium. She has participated in the most championships with 17 while she has won a total of 19 medals in the Commonwealth Games. Das’ exploits have laid the foundation for Batra and other women athletes to do well.
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