20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026, 9/19-10/4

[zeio]

CNT really did WRB dirty here. I feel quite bad for him, though there's still a sliver of chance he might be able to do something...?

WRB actually did OK for his first MT final. It was made clear in the selection criteria that they were going to use Asian Games 2026 and ATTC 2026 to "assess milestones" for LA28 and "discover as well as nurture" reserve players for Brisbane 2032. Honestly, WH is more courageous than Kishikawa in making use of unproven players when necessary and try out various lineups even at the risk of losing.

 

[zeio]

I don't know if its just me but I think that the china mens team could've had more of a chance in the finals if it was zhou qihao playing rather than wen ruibo? I know that he played in the recent star contender but if he just switched places with like xiang peng, how would it go? Nonetheless, japan played the best games I've seen since the world team champs matches. Japan still would've won most likely

Citing form and injuries, both LJK and ZQH opted out of the selection trial, which XP ended up winning, whereas WCQ, LSD and WRB qualified by WR.

Selection criteria
https://www.tabletennisdaily.com/fo...-cnt-boss-what-would-you-do.35638/post-577401
Lineups and rationales
https://www.tabletennisdaily.com/fo...-cnt-boss-what-would-you-do.35638/post-580040

 

[zeio]

A great day for the Japanese men. I am annoyed though at the Olympic organizing committee for dropping men's and women's teams in favor of mixed teams. The Japanese men would have had a very good shot at winning gold if the men's teams event was continued at the LA2028 Olympics. In any case, the day belongs to the Japanese men's team.

Another cringeworthy comment, which has crept up in recent years.

You're gravely underestimating the other teams from around the world, namely FRA, and to a lesser extent TPE, SWE and GER. You're also overly optimistic about the consistency of JPN. Care to look up the teams they lost to and the matches they dropped before the final at WTTC 2026, something that even Harimoto had admitted? Let me help you - GER (QD and Duda in Grp and then Franziska in KO) and FRA (Coton, F. Lebrun and A. Lebrun in Grp), BEL (Nuytinck), and KAZ (Gerrassimenko).

It wasn't all smooth sailing for Matsushima and Togami this time here either, with both barely edging out Gerrassimenko and OJS in the 5th game, respectively. While it's true there could be occasions where their men would carry their women, the record in XTWC suggests that their women would save the ass of their men more than the other way around.

Last but not least, it should be pointed out the "accommodation crisis", all in the name of sustainability and cost cutting, has played a part in this result. Players and coaches are forced to either travel hours on end between Costa Serena (your problem if you get seasickness) and the venue, or find a hotel close by to stay and secure their own means of transportation at their own risk and expense. This is the second time after Tokyo 2020 (here and here) that JPN as the host has resorted to underhand and questionable practice while acting innocent. In any case, this is a tainted win.

 

[Grahf]

a few of my observations and questions going forward

1-lately hayata just cannot perform when she sees the chinese flag, while against any european or japanese she does, like cmon give another player the chance there, but lets be honest, even with other player on the japanese side, the female chinese team is literally unstoppable

2-what is gonna be the CNT plan for LA28 on men singles? an older WCQ and whos gonna help him? I mean, lin shidong just cant break his own umbral, this is really getting harder and harder for the CNT, because I dont think ZQH or LJK either can, is wen ruibo growing the last hope? can a gold medal defence by an older FZD be viable?

3-thinks looking bright on the japanese men team, I really expected more from togami, but idk its like he refuses to take the spotlight on the crucial moments, but tomo and sora are really one of the strongest men pairs for any event, and maybe yukiya ueda can grow stronger and challenge those 2

 

[takkyuunoyume]

Another cringeworthy comment, which has crept up in recent years.

You're gravely underestimating the other teams from around the world, namely FRA, and to a lesser extent TPE, SWE and GER. You're also overly optimistic about the consistency of JPN. Care to look up the teams they lost to and the matches they dropped before the final at WTTC 2026, something that even Harimoto had admitted? Let me help you - GER (QD and Duda in Grp and then Franziska in KO) and FRA (Coton, F. Lebrun and A. Lebrun in Grp), BEL (Nuytinck), and KAZ (Gerrassimenko).

It wasn't all smooth sailing for Matsushima and Togami this time here either, with both barely edging out Gerrassimenko and OJS in the 5th game, respectively. While it's true there could be occasions where their men would carry their women, the record in XTWC suggests that their women would save the ass of their men more than the other way around.

Last but not least, it should be pointed out the "accommodation crisis", all in the name of sustainability and cost cutting, has played a part in this result. Players and coaches are forced to either travel hours on end between Costa Serena (your problem if you get seasickness) and the venue, or find a hotel close by to stay and secure their own means of transportation at their own risk and expense. This is the second time after Tokyo 2020 (here and here) that JPN as the host has resorted to underhand and questionable practice while acting innocent. In any case, this is a tainted win.

All he said was that they'd have had a good shot. Isn't that reasonable? Calling that cringeworthy... well, it made me cringe.

 

[NextLevel]

I don't know if its just me but I think that the china mens team could've had more of a chance in the finals if it was zhou qihao playing rather than wen ruibo? I know that he played in the recent star contender but if he just switched places with like xiang peng, how would it go? Nonetheless, japan played the best games I've seen since the world team champs matches. Japan still would've won most likely

Who was ZQH going to beat? He had lost to both Japanese aces recently. Honestly WRB outperformed. Without a heroic performance by Harimoto, it would have been BAU.

 

[NextLevel]

Japanese coach doesn’t have much freedom to choose whom to play for the team, I guess.

He does but since the team is not the same as the Chinese team in terms of command structure, he needs to justify his decisions in both the service of the individual and the team. Good results and team buy-in resolve everything but bad results will create coat vs benefit questions. It just prevents abuse.

I am sure Sora and Harimoto agreed to keep Harimoto as team ace in the matchups. But imagine if a coach said he was going to keep Harimoto as ace because he is better than Sora. Well if it doesn't work, the coach has to explain how it helps team morale. It prevents the abuse of power in systems with opportunity. When people want to make radical moves, they need to have great teasons or Timo will make the team over Franziska for dubious reasons even if somewhat defensible like many high risk schemes are.

 

[NextLevel]

Miwa, Hashimoto, Sato - this would be a far tougher match up for the chinese.

Chen Yi and Kuai Man are making progress. Let's see how it goes.

 

[zeio]

All he said was that they'd have had a good shot. Isn't that reasonable? Calling that cringeworthy... well, it made me cringe.

Another case of arguing with the player here.

You need to read Harimoto's comment after the MT final on not having run into FRA, SWE, GER and TPE in the KO stage of WTTC 2026. Their odds of reaching the final would have been lower. If even the player admits that to the press, then why would a fan feel so optimistic?

Harimoto made a big claim that HKG would've been easy meat had they reached the MT F of ATTC 2025 and then proceeded to lose 1-3 against WCT at Asian Cup 2026.

世界卓球2026ロンドン　
大会最終日（5月10日）　男子団体準優勝　日本チームのコメント
https://www.butterfly.co.jp/takurepo/tournament/detail/028238.html

--日本チームは若いという話もされていて、今日は0対3でしたが、中国と実際そこまで差があるかというと以前ほどないようにも思います。一方、フランスはもっと若い3人が揃っている。世界の男子は群雄割拠という印象を持ちましたがどのように感じていますか?
　そうですね。フランスの3人、一番上のA.ルブランが僕と同級生なので、コトン、F.ルブラン。松島の方が1個下ですけど、平均で見れば若いことに変わりないですし、大会が始まる前から日本、フランス、中国が本大会の軸となる話をしましたけど、今後10年くらいは変わらないと思いますね。ドイツは年代が上ですし、それでいったら中華台北の方がまだ可能性があると思います。
　今回僕たちはフランスとやってないですし、スウェーデンともやってないし、かといってドイツ、中華台北にもう一度勝てるかといったら100%ではないと思うので、中国までのあと一歩の差を埋めることも大切ですけど、男子の場合は他のチームにしっかり勝っていくことも大事だと思う。いつもここで銀であと少しだったと思って、次の海外の試合で他の選手に負けるともう訳がわからなくなってしまうので、銀メダルを取ったことの収穫は確かにありますけど、ちゃんと1試合1試合目を向けた時に、誰が誰に勝ったかを見なきゃ、チームで勝ったことが曖昧になってしまうと思う。一人一人が経験を得て、これからの海外の試合に戻っていくのが大事だと思います。

--There’s been talk about the Japanese team being young; while the score was 0–3 today, I feel the gap between Japan and China isn't as wide as it used to be. On the other hand, France has a trio of even younger players. It gives the impression that the global men's scene is a highly competitive landscape with many contenders—what is your take on that?
That’s true. Among the French trio, Alexis Lebrun is the same age as me, followed by Coton and Félix Lebrun. Matsushima is a year younger, but the fact remains that, on average, they are a young team. Before the tournament started, we talked about Japan, France, and China being the key players here, and I think that dynamic won't change for the next decade or so. Germany’s squad is older, so in that sense, I think Chinese Taipei has more future potential.

We didn't face France or Sweden this time around. At the same time, I don't think we can guarantee a win against Germany or Chinese Taipei if we played them again. So, while closing the final gap to China is important, I believe it’s equally crucial for the men's team to consistently beat the other squads. If we just dwell on "coming so close" and settling for silver, only to lose to other players in the next international tournament, we’ll lose our sense of direction. Winning the silver medal certainly has its merits, but when looking at each match individually, we have to analyze exactly who beat whom; otherwise, the significance of the team victory becomes blurred. I think the most important thing is for each player to gain experience and carry that forward into future international competitions.

 

[takkyuunoyume]

Another case of arguing with the player here.

You need to read Harimoto's comment after the MT final on not having run into FRA, SWE, GER and TPE in the KO stage of WTTC 2026. Their odds of reaching the final would have been lower. If even the player admits that to the press, then why would a fan feel so optimistic?

Harimoto made a big claim that HKG would've been easy meat had they reached the MT F of ATTC 2025 and then proceeded to lose 1-3 against WCT at Asian Cup 2026.

世界卓球2026ロンドン　
大会最終日（5月10日）　男子団体準優勝　日本チームのコメント
https://www.butterfly.co.jp/takurepo/tournament/detail/028238.html

--There’s been talk about the Japanese team being young; while the score was 0–3 today, I feel the gap between Japan and China isn't as wide as it used to be. On the other hand, France has a trio of even younger players. It gives the impression that the global men's scene is a highly competitive landscape with many contenders—what is your take on that?
That’s true. Among the French trio, Alexis Lebrun is the same age as me, followed by Coton and Félix Lebrun. Matsushima is a year younger, but the fact remains that, on average, they are a young team. Before the tournament started, we talked about Japan, France, and China being the key players here, and I think that dynamic won't change for the next decade or so. Germany’s squad is older, so in that sense, I think Chinese Taipei has more future potential.

We didn't face France or Sweden this time around. At the same time, I don't think we can guarantee a win against Germany or Chinese Taipei if we played them again. So, while closing the final gap to China is important, I believe it’s equally crucial for the men's team to consistently beat the other squads. If we just dwell on "coming so close" and settling for silver, only to lose to other players in the next international tournament, we’ll lose our sense of direction. Winning the silver medal certainly has its merits, but when looking at each match individually, we have to analyze exactly who beat whom; otherwise, the significance of the team victory becomes blurred. I think the most important thing is for each player to gain experience and carry that forward into future international competitions.

Does any of that, or even all of it put together, really lead you to believe that the statement that they 'would have had a good shot at gold' is so far from reasonable as to call it 'cringeworthy'?

 

[FIXPOINT]

Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 WT Final

Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 MT Final

 

[NextLevel]

Most likely SYS would be 3-0 against either Mima Ito or Miyu Nagasaki. Miyu hasn't won a game against SYS in their last 3 meetings. Last time she won 1 game was 2017. At a minimum, playing Hina will provide intel for the Olympics as Hina is most likely to make the team.

Unfortunately, some fans are so desperate to try something different in the face of losing that they think trying something different is everything. People have bad days, things go wrong and massive surprises can happen. Even with all the competitive matches they have had, how many people would have bet their money on Harimoto 3-0, no deuces, dominant fashion over WCQ?

Hayata is still the second best non-CNT player in the world. Very little fanfare or debate about that. If anyone had a seriously better chance of beating SYS in a women's teams than she does, they would have to demonstrate it in real matches, not pretend it is obvious. I am surprised no one has suggested recruiting Ayhika Mukherjee to play for Japan.

 

[NextLevel]

The head to head record between Sys and hina now is 20:0 to Sun. When is team Japan going to learn ? - hina is a waste of a team spot. Try someone like Hashimoto, Sato or Odo ffs.

Dima and Mizutani have similar bad records vs Ma Long. Unfortunately, neither Team Japan or Germany learned the lesson to deny these players (both Olympic medallists) the ability to play for bronze medals in Olympics singles or get them off their silver medal winning teams simply because they could not beat Ma Long. I think Hayata is worthy of the same consideration.

While I understand why fans feel this way, fans should also try to develop a broader view of table tennis.