The 2023 World Table Tennis Championships brought plenty of pleasant surprises and the worst organization ever by ITTF and WTT.
When we evaluate and look back at such a big event as World Championships, we need to separate the performance of players, which was truly exciting, and the organization. In terms of purely table tennis, World Championships simply cannot disappoint. Of course, the Chinese dominance might annoy or scare away some parts of the table tennis audience, but we still got a chance to enjoy all the best players in action. All the favorites went to Durban to pursue the medals.
The season, leading up to this tournament saw some of the Chinese players having a tough time in WTT tournaments, but as predicted – they reached the top form for the most important tournament of the year. All five Chinese players were able to reach the 1/4 finals stage, and eventually, they won all the medals in the singles event. They once again proved that when it matters the most, their mental strength is at its peak.
You cannot say the same about other internationals. 2021 World Championships finalist Truls Moregardh showed that his temper and slightly arrogant attitude cannot carry him past the Round of 32. The Swedish star is a very talented, but still unstable player. All the comparisons with Jan-Ove Waldner should calm down a bit now. It’s one thing to shine when you’re underdog, but completely different when you have a status of a favorite. Pressure is different.
However, this tournament once again strengthened the idea that outside of the top Chinese players, everyone can win anyone. The Rankings system is broken, and it does not give a clear indication of a player’s strength. Even a Top 10 player, like Hugo Calderano, can be knocked out in the first round. That’s why we saw the Danish sensation Anders Lind make it to the Top 8. He might be ranked outside of the Top 100, but the quality is there, and his ranking does not do any justice.
Many fans were hoping to see Ma Long make a strong run and win his fourth singles title in his career. The 34-year-old veteran truly had a good run, feeling little to no resistance up to the semi-finals stage. There, he had to surrender his title hopes to Wang Chuqin. Ma Long still has the quality to be a title contender, but Wang Chuqin seems the one player that is simply too hard to beat for him. Too fast to keep up with him in the decisive moments.
The eventual champion Fan Zhendong, on the contrary, was able to find his ways to win his second consecutive World Championships title. Unlike his older teammate, who has gone through surgeries and injuries, Fan Zhendong remains in top condition. Wang Chuqin resisted well and gave the impression that he might this one, but he lacked composure in the decisive moments. He occasionally got caught up in a desire to finish the point earlier, while his opponent was slightly more patient and consistent in such episodes. It was a lightning-speed versus brutal power matchup, and this time, power closed the deal.
And now the worst part. The organization. Awful, terrible – only negative words can be attributed to ITTF and WTT. Nobody cared about this tournament in South Africa. The decision to make the background during live streams almost black was simply to hide the fact that the stands were empty. It’s a World Championships, but the atmosphere was simply non-existent. It reminded some WTT-organized Feeder tournament, rather than an actual WTTC.
It clearly shows that awarding major tournaments to countries without any serious table tennis traditions is a mistake. Why would anyone buy expensive tickets, if nobody cares about this sport there? Organize the World Championships in China, Japan, Korea, Germany, Sweden, Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Spain, and the list goes on. There are so many countries around the world that would guarantee a wonderful experience for both – players and fans. But no, ITTF and WTT completely messed it all up.
The same can be said about the system of this tournament. It’s broken. The last actual World Championships took place in 2019. Since Budapest, it has been sort of a parody. If it’s World Championships, why not allow every country to send its best athletes to participate? In the past, the system was perfect. Top-ranked players waited for the main draw, while the lower-ranked players had a chance to enter the main draw through the qualification rounds. It’s a completely fair and understandable system. Now you get a limited number of countries participating, and the draw also messes up everything. You can get two mediocre players drawn together in the first round, and one of them advances to the next round. At the same time, you can get two strong players to face each other in the first round, and one has to exit early. Sure, the draw can never be 100% perfect, but the current system is awful. It’s not worth limiting the countries that can participate.
The live-streaming also did not make much sense. Many fans were stripped from the opportunity to see the action in the decisive stages. If ITTF and WTT do not respect the actual table tennis fans, there is no way such an attitude will lead to an increase in people who would like to follow this sport. Unlikely, but hopefully, some notes will be taken, and we will never again have to see such a terribly organized event. It does no good to the popularization of table tennis.
2023 WORLD TABLE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS
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