The following is why dumbness has no place in competitive table tennis. JNT is wasting time here.
Tan Zhao Yun shines as S’pore women earn bronze at Asian Table Tennis Team C’ships
https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/...-win-bronze-at-asian-table-tennis-team-cships
SINGAPORE – Not only is Tan Zhao Yun a member of the national intermediate table tennis squad, she also runs YouTube channel TRYTT as a hobby – the 2,100-subscriber channel has 85 videos and it is managed by Tan and her twin brother Zhao Ray.
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The second-year Singapore Management University computer science undergraduate told The Straits Times: “I had beaten Manika in another tournament last month, so coach (Jing Jun Hong) hoped I was able to win again.
“I was initially quite stressed and nervous, but I took it as an opportunity to play against different styles as we don’t have anyone in our team who plays with long pimples like her.
“After beating her, we were up 2-0 and then when it was 2-2 and I had to play again, I told myself to just do my best against Diya Chitale. Don’t think too much and play like I would during training.
“In the end, I’m happy to be able to contribute to the team’s victory.”
Indian newspaper The Hindu hailed the defensive specialist’s “remarkable consistency”, noting: “Tan’s defensive mastery proved the ultimate weapon. Her control and variation not only unsettled Manika in the opening match but also dismantled Diya’s rhythm when it mattered the most.”
Under their father’s influence, the Tan siblings started playing table tennis at six. Both started off as attackers before Zhao Yun was persuaded by her coach to switch to a defensive style because her attacks were not powerful enough.
She said: “I was initially quite reluctant as my peers were all attackers, but afterwards I found that it matched my patient personality to be a defensive personality.
“Every athlete wants to compete with the best at the Olympics and that’s my dream too.
“But I haven’t thought about whether I want to play full-time, so for now my goal is to win a SEA Games medal first.”
National women’s coach Jing was encouraged by Tan’s display and how her young team – average age 20 – managed to improve on their performances in 2023 (seventh) and 2024 (eighth) to match their joint-third finish in 2021.
She said: “This is a pleasant surprise. The younger players treasure their spot in the national team and have a strong desire to want to compete and prove themselves.
“During the build-up, they have trained hard while juggling their studies and also had the experience of playing on the World Table Tennis circuit.
“Zhao Yun is one such disciplined player who has a stable game and is capable of handling pressure. She has improved in terms of her technique, footwork, awareness and game IQ, and her playing style is an asset to us.
“Against India, we fielded her because we felt our opponents preferred to play attacking players and she would cause them problems as a chopper. I hope there can be more young players stepping up like her, so that we can have more strength in depth and variation for the national team so that we can have specific weapons to counter specific opponents.”
