The world of table tennis was thrilled with players around the globe participating in WTT Star Contender Doha 2022.

The focus of this post is on the Chinese players who participated. The world of table tennis is used to Chinese players winning tournaments they participate in, however, the WTT Star Contender Doha 2022 was a different story.

The Chinese paraded what one could term as their team B. Per the standards of the Chinese national team their players are not to lose to the rest of the world.

With this philosophy in mind, players from China are difficult to beat in competitions. The task of the second string team was to demonstrate their ability in dominating the rest of the world. The first male team has two aging players, Ma Long and Xu Xin. The female team on the other hand would dominate the rest of the world for a decade to come.

With the Chinese identifying the need to have credible replacements for Ma Long and Xu Xin, the second-string team was given the opportunity to prove themselves against the rest of the world only for them to falter. Aruna Quadri took care of three of the male players en route to the semifinals, which was unprecedented and a record-breaking endeavor and as the only African to have qualified to the semifinals of such a major tournament.

The question to my readers is should the Chinese be worried about the performance in this tournament or it should be brushed aside as a minor setback?

Should the likes of Ma Long and Xu Xin be encouraged to continue playing in all events as it’s normal to find players in the rest of the world competition well into their late thirties?

Congratulations to all the winners in Doha. Till I come your way with another post I would like to say keep safe, and be positive.