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Baal and I have played with and probably understand the plastic ball better than many players who are mildly acquainted with them. Ther variation in ABS balls which have been used since April 2017 is very subtle and ended an era of confusion. Don't use statements made before then unless you...

Of course I do. The world rankings didn't change that much if at all over the last 3 years since the plastic ball came out. The 14 year old is an isolated phenomenon who is not rivalled by anyone in his age group. You can make up stuff all you want but you can't make up your own facts. A...

What's the evidence that elite level play has temporarily declined in consistency and quality?

Yeah. I can't see the difference between the music of Beethoven and the Music of Bach or Mozart. Nah I am just being facetious. One of my favorite movie pundits, John Campea, likes to stress that artistic appreciation is ultimately subjective. I have never looked at any of those 3 players...

The bounce of celluloid was nice but it was definitely more inconsistent as the ball got larger as the 40mm ball felt thinner. I think ABS material makes it more consistent like the 38mm ball but the increase in size reduces the ball movement. If you have a 38mm Nittaku or TSP ball, play with...

I am actually closer to your position on this topic. I think that the cellulose acetate ball was too soft, but I think that celluloid itself is softer than ABS. This makes the ball easier to deform and more inconsistent, making it also deform more when it hits the table and the racket. This...

We can debate that all we want to but in my opinion you are wrong on both fronts. His backhand action is unique as is his fast attack playing style. Moreover, prodigy and genius are often used interchangeably to describe gifted individuals. So your opinion is yours, and I hate semantic...

Possibly true, but everyone is playing with the same ball so it is best to judge people in relation to their peers. And to be honest, I don't always agree that the idiosyncrasies of celluloid when reacting with rubber that made spin more effective were always a good thing for our sport. But...

Someone called it premature but let's review the evidence. Youngest WJTTC singles winner. Youngest world tour event winner (beating Boll, Zhang Jike in the finals). Youngest WTTC quarter finalist. Youngest World Team Cup silver medalist. Youngest Japanese National Champion. And he is...

People don't fully want to accept that what Harimoto is doing is a work of genius. The kid has supernatural spin reading abilities and timing and probably has far above average in game reactions to reading opponents and the ball even for top level players. He is taking balls that others would...

There is no need to debate this. Reasonable people know what you meant. People disagree on these things all the time. Yoass is just trying to make sure that other voices get heard.

YouTube doesn't work in every country.

Come on, this is the Japan Open. Great job by both players.

Japan is going to get 2 champs.

Come on... I can see that. What I was really asking was what happened in those 4 points that Ito won that seem to have transformed the match.

What happened in the Chen-Ito match? I assumed it was over at 3-0 and 9-7 (can not watch the actual match live, but all of a sudden it is 3-1 (Ito won 4 straight points and is running away with game 5).

Looks like Liu Shiwen's window has closed. There was no guarantee that she would get past Ding Ning and losing to Wang Manyu doesn't bode well either. 2019 WTTC on the women's side is going to be a big effing deal.

Did you watch this match?

Well, since Ma Long lost, Zhang Jike will have to be immobilized fo retire.

I understand this but I don't fully buy it. The key thing as pointed out by Zhang Jike is that the spin effect of the older balls is gone and you don't win shots off single shots as much and are forced to rally more. This puts the players who have a memory of what a quality shot used to be at...