Ma Long interviews, matches and beyond

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Huge Hurricane Long 5 blade at DHS booth in China International Sporting Goods Show.
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2018 China Unicom amateur table tennis tournament has started. Amateur players have chance to meet China National Team stars like Ma Long, Ding Ning, Fan Zhendong, and Chen Meng. Great popularity of table tennis in China!
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On May 29 morning, China National Team left Beijing for Shenzhen for 2018 China Open. Ma Long is #5 seed in men's singles and #3 seed with Xu Xin in men's doubles. Main draw will start on May 31.
Previously, Ma Long won singles 6 times and doubles 7 times at China Open.
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Training already started in Shenzhen
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2018 China Open main draw started on May 31. In the morning, our banner flags were ready in the stadium in Shenzhen. We have also prepared free souvenirs including pins, notebooks, stickers, coin purses, and 1.5 size Hurricane Long cheering paddles sponsored by DHS Sports.
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On the first day, Ma Long / Xu Xin beat Chuang Chih-Yuan / Chen Chien-An by 3-0 (11:9, 11:9, 11:9) in the R16 of men's doubles at 2018 China Open. Later they faced another Chinese Taipei's pair Liao Cheng-Ting / Lin Yun-Ju who gave them some hard time at 2018 German Open. They won by 3-0 (12:10, 11:4, 13:11). In the post-match interview, Ma Long said they had fully prepared for the match and performed better than the last encounter when they were 0-2 down and came back 3-2.
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Ma Long also attended the opening ceremony and presented flowers to Zhang Xielin with ball kid.
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On Jun 1, Ma Long / Xu Xin will play against Ovidiu Ionescu / Alvaro Robles at the semifinal and Ma Long will face Lin Yun-Ju in the R32 of men's singles.
 
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On Jun 1, Ma Long / Xu Xin were upset by Ovidiu Ionescu / Alvaro Robles and did not reach the final of men's doubles at 2018 China Open. Ma Long beat Lin Yun-Ju in the R32 and Wang Chuqin in the R16 and proceeded to the quarterfinal of men's singles.
Men's doubles semifinal started in the morning. Ma Long / Xu Xin leveled up after 0-2 down and held match points in the deciding game but did not capitalize. They lost to the new European duo by 2-3 (9:11, 9:11, 11:4, 11:4, 10:12).
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In the afternoon, Ma Long beat Lin Yun-Ju by 4-0 (11:5, 11:8, 11:9, 11:5). In the post-match interview, he said Lin Yun-Ju has unique style and touch in his age group and will become a major rival of China National Team in the future.
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In the evening, Ma Long beat Wang Chuqin by 4-1 (9:11, 11:3, 11:7, 11:9, 11:8). In the post-match interview, he said both Wang Chuqin and he played well and had some great rallies as they are familiar with each other's style and placements. He did not get affected by losing the first game although leading 9-7. When asked what he thought during the time-out he called at 9-8 in the fifth game, he said he lost 2 consecutive points leading 9-6. He called the time-out by instinct to calm down and finish the match.
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Ma Long thinks he is still young. He IS.
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Q: The tournament schedule becomes more and more tight. Will it affect the energy arrangement for elder players like you?
Ma Long: First of all, I have to clarify that I am not an elder player. I think it is normal. Previous tournaments were as tight. Right now Timo Boll is still playing a match. As pro players, we just need to get adapted to the stadium, schedule and so on.


On Jun 2, Ma Long will face Liang Jingkun in the quarterfinal.
 
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On Jun 2, Ma Long extended the full distance to beat Liang Jingkun by 4-3 (11:13, 7:11, 12:10, 11:9, 8:11, 11:3, 11:6) in the quaterfinal of 2018 China Open.
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In the post-match interview, Ma Long said it was not an easy match. Liang Jingkun has the ability to beat top players in the world and he beat Timo Boll yesterday. Both Liang Jingkun and he played very well. Although it was only a quarterfinal at World Tour tournament that he had played numerous times, he did not easily give up especially when 0-2 and 2-3 down. He did not find himself advantageous in overall techniques and tactics at the beginning, therefore he made many variations including techniques he seldom uses in daily training, which were beyond Liang Jingkun's expectations and caused him many errors. In the deciding game, he attacked more and gave more pressure to the opponent.
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In the semifinal, Ma Long faced Lim Jonghoon who upset Xu Xin, Chuang Chih-Yuan and Lee Sangsu, and won by 4-1 (11:9, 11:3, 11:4, 10:12, 11:2). He entered the final of China Open for the tenth time.
In the post-match interview, Ma Long said in the first game, he was learning the style and characteristics of the opponent. Then he controlled the rhythm of the second and third game. He lost some concentration and made some unforced errors in the fourth but adjusted in the fifth game and did not give the opponent chances any more.
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Tomorrow he will play against the current World Ranking #1 Fan Zhendong, after he played against the former World Ranking #1 Timo Boll in German Open in March. He said he is expecting a hard match and will enjoy the match.
 
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On Jun 3, Ma Long won his 7th #ITTFWorldTour China Open men's singles title beating Fan Zhendong by 4-1 (7:11, 11:8, 11:4, 11:3, 14:12) and became the most successful player of men's singles in the history of China Open.
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After losing the first game, Ma Long quickly made adjustments and put the following three games fully under his control. In the fifth game, he saved 4 game points and capitalized his first match point. To celebrate, he snapped fingers like Thanos did.
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In the post-match interview, he was quite happy with the victory and thanked fans for supporting him and table tennis. He said the average age of 5 opponents he played in this tournament is only 20. Table tennis is growing well in China and abroad with these young talents.
This is the second time in 2018 that Ma Long beat the World Ranking #1 of the month. When did he lose to a World Ranking #1 of the month last time? 2011.
 
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Refreshed one day with his baby son in Beijing, on Jun 5, Ma Long headed for 2018 Japan Open.
He is #2 seed of Japan Open (based on May ranking) taking place this week. Will he meet Tomokazu Harimoto or revenge Jeong Sangeun?


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In the June edition of ITTF World Ranking, Ma Long climbed to #2 with the ranking points he got as China Open champion. However, even if he won Japan Open, his July ranking will drop and be no higher than #5.
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The official Sina Weibo account of Ma Long Studio was announced on Jun 6. The first post was wishes to Ma Long at 2018 Japan Open and wishes to students who will attend China College Entrance Exam on Jun 7-8. "Good luck in the match and good luck in the exam. Overcome hardship and believe in yourself."
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We hope the studio will help Ma Long manage off-court endorsements and activities, protect Ma Long's rights from unauthorized use like the Yinhe blade incident and so on. Most importantly, keep him worry free to have more time on table tennis and family.

The main draw of 2018 Japan Open will start on Jun 8. Ma Long will play against Chiang Hung-Chieh in R32. Guess when they played last time? 2004!
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In 2018 June Issue of Table Tennis World Magazine, Coach Liu Guozheng reviewed the performace of Team China at 2018 WTTTC in Halmstad, Sweden. He spoke highly of Ma Long.
"We coaches should learn from Ma Long in many aspects


Ma Long is indeed a great player. He is very responsible and reliable. He has full team spirits. Not only does he better himself, he helps people around him and sets high standards for them, which is especially important for the growth of young players. During this WTTTC, Ma Long shared many experiences with Fan Zhendong, noticed what concerned Xu Xin, and gave me timely suggestions and feedback. I am rather new to Team A, his suggestions and feedback is very crucial for me.
During the knockout stage, Ma Long carried a greater load on his shoulder and he felt more nervous than before. Previously Ma Long prepared for the major tournaments based on his own routine. However, recent changes in coach group and players made Ma Long worry more and prepare more. That shows how responsible he is. He is not a player who only cares about his own matches; his goal is to win the champion with a solidary team.
Ma Long is very solid and confident on the court, which gives me a lot of confidence. His keen awareness of crisis is also very important for the whole team. The role of a captain is to lead the team. During this WTTTC, Captain Long is undoubtedly the backbone of the team. He made every detail of what a captain and backbone should do to perfection. When he communicates with me, his every word is honest and straight. He is the bridge between coaches and players. We coaches should learn from Ma Long in many aspects."
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The International Olympic Committee will hold an exhibition tournament in Lausanne, Switzerland on Jun 23 2018, "Olympic Day", to promote dialogue on and around Korean Peninsula. Table tennis stars are invited including China's Ma Long and Ding Ning, South Korea's Ryu Seung Min and Kim Kyungah, Japan's Ai Fukuhara and Tomokazu Harimoto, North Korea's Kim Song I and Pak Sin Hyok.
Table tennis for peace!
https://www.olympic.org/news/ioc-continues-with-dialogue-on-the-korean-peninsula
 
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What can you do if you were 0-3, 1:9 down and your opponent's lobbing hit the edge?
Ma Long swept Chiang Hung-Chieh by 4-0 (11:2, 11:6, 11:2, 11:1) in R32 at 2018 Japan Open. He will play against Maharu Yoshimura next round.
Ai Fukuhara joked that her husband should not compete with Ma Long in table tennis. Next time, they can compete whose baby drinks more milk. Ma Long replied to her, "I saw your efforts cheering for him".
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On Jun 9, Ma Long swept Maharu Yoshimura by 4-0 (12:10, 11:1, 11:4, 11:4) in the R16 but was upset by Tomokazu Harimoto by 2-4 (8:11, 9:11, 7:11, 11:3, 11:2, 6:11) in the quarterfinal of 2018 Japan Open. Although Ma Long was able to find solutions to restrict Tomokazu Harimoto in the fourth and fifth games, he still had trouble returning his opponent's serves and missed many seemingly easy shots.


In the post-match interview, Ma Long reviewed the match.
Q: Three years passed since you played with Tomokazu Harimoto last time, how do you think his performance this time?
Ma Long: He has improved a lot with his hard working during the past three years. In the past year or two, he has played all the top players of the world and he is growing.
Q: You are attending two World Tour in a row, are you aiming to return to World Ranking #1 by attending the tournament?
Ma Long: No, I don't consider it. A tournament is a tournament. I don't think about what the consequence is.
Q: How did you prepare mentally before this match?
Ma Long: I just regarded it as a normal match and did not think about anything irrelevant.
Q: Can you review the match? What technical or tactical changes did you make?
Ma Long: Today I did not perform ideally. In each game, I made some unforced errors and let my opponent make the lead.


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What shall Ma Long change in order to play at 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games?
In an interview with Table Tennis World Magazine, Coach Liu Guozheng reviewed Ma Long's performance during 2018 China Open and Japan Open.


"Ma Long played very well at China Open. He handled all the challenges from young players. In face of Lin Yun-ju and Lim Jonghoon who just beat Chinese players, Ma Long fully prepared and executed. He did not easily lower the standards for himself. This is great trait and the team shall learn from him. In the final against Fan Zhendong, Ma Long showcased his system of techniques and tactics to full extent. He controlled the match since the second game. His good form deserved the champion.

At Japan Open, Ma Long lost to Tomokazu Harimoto. This match is a warning to Ma Long, to coaches and to the whole team. Tomokazu Harimoto's techniques are in style. His game is quite straightforward, proactive and powerful in every shot.

Ma Long played quite comfortably in recent matches. A loss may not be bad as it reminds him if he wants to play at 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, he must need some changes and improvements. Although Ma Long is in a good form now, his opponents have thorough study of his game and they put up fight against him since they have nothing to lose. If Ma Long did not change or improve himself, he could still win for a while, however, his would face greater challenges later on. Therefore, Ma Long will add some specific technical training to daily training."
 
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On Jun 21, Ma Long left Beijing for Lausanne, Switzerland.
It is reported that Ma Long will pair with Ai Fukuhara and Ding Ning with Ryu Seung Min in the IOC exhibition tournament.


The International Olympic Committee will hold an exhibition tournament in Lausanne, Switzerland on Jun 23 2018, "Olympic Day", to promote dialogue on and around Korean Peninsula. Table tennis stars are invited including China's Ma Long and Ding Ning, South Korea's Ryu Seung Min and Kim Kyungah, Japan's Ai Fukuhara and Tomokazu Harimoto, North Korea's Kim Song I and Pak Sin Hyok.
Table tennis for peace!
https://www.olympic.org/news/ioc-continues-with-dialogue-on-the-korean-peninsula
 
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