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

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

If anything, Ito and Nagasaki aren't that far behind from Harimoto in terms of score in recent matches. However unrelated here, keep in mind Nagasaki is 2-0 up against ZYL (Japan Open 2019 and Swedish Open 2019), with no one expecting those consecutive wins.

Hayata's problem doesn't have to do with score but her poor form in majors, often getting injured ahead of or during the tournament, e.g. WTTC 2022, Paris 2024 leading to ATTC 2024, WTTC 2026. She wasn't in good form coming into the Asian Games, as seen at WTT CT Almaty 2026. Hayata in WT is like Boll in MS.

Hayata: Ahem, I am 0-19 SYS, 0-6 WMY...
Ito: 2-13 SYS (Asian Junior & Cadet TTC 2014 and Swedish Open 2019), 2-17 WMY (Japan Open 2018 and Swedish Open 2019)
Nagasaki: 0-5 SYS (earning 2 games in total and in junior years), 0-3 WMY (4 games in total, 2-1 -> 2-3 at EUR GS 2025)
Harimoto: 1-9 SYS (ATTC 2024), 1-11 WMY (WTTC 2026)

Obviously the odds are stacked against Japan in Women’s team final. Rin Mende to the rescue ?

 

[Janard]

North Korea is severely underperforming? Dropping off so easily. Or am I just expecting too much from them based off the last Olympics showing.

 

[JackJohnson]

As one of those Tieba users suggested, it's possible CNT might play LSD in 3rd singles and WRB in 2nd singles to "catch" Harimoto.

This is also another option CNT might do that I was thinking as well. Let’s see what CNT decide but if they need to protect LSD and put him at 3 then he really does not deserve the 2nd Olympics Singles slot if thats the case. Never seen a mens CNT player in the past that needs to be protected so bad like LSD. If the juniors don’t perform well and FZD doesn’t come back LJK should take the 2nd Olympics Singles slot.

 

[JackJohnson]

Obviously the odds are stacked against Japan in Women’s team final. Rin Mende to the rescue ?

They should try, they have nothing to lose by selecting Rin Mende.

 

[KiwiPong]

They should try, they have nothing to lose by selecting Rin Mende.I

They should try, they have nothing to lose by selecting Rin Mende.

I say, skip Hayata and definitely Ito. Send Miwa, Nagasaki and Mende up vs China!

 

[NextLevel]

Obviously the odds are stacked against Japan in Women’s team final. Rin Mende to the rescue ?

i know you are jokong but...

And what will she do other than lose like everyone else? And the players that have lost to China and who Rui has been working with to improve their results for this event- because they have never won (other than Miwa), we throw that out the window for a hail mary strategy that will have worse consequences for Japan?

They should try, they have nothing to lose by selecting Rin Mende.

Not picking the best performing players who are actively trying to get better is always a huge risk to team morale in the absence of evidence that makes the alternate path defensible.

The answer to Chinese dominance is not baseless hail maries that show despair. It is simply playinf the best players and looking and hoping for breaks. It is a distant memory now but Hina Hayata once beat Chen Meng in a situation like this.

 

[zeio]

Times are hard when I start sounding like Tieba users. Where did I go wrong?

Opinions of OJS were actually quite poor among Tieba users in 2025 who kept tabs on his stats despite the fact that he beat WCQ in MS to eventually finish with a bronze at ATTC 2024, which I've noted before. It wasn't until those 2 wins over LJK and LSD (3rd man and 4th player in this century) and the 2-3 loss against WCQ at WTTC 2026 that views changed.

Togami needs that kind of convincing performance but he's failed to show much growth, which is the vibe given off by those Tieba opinions last night, and it turned out to be the not-so-usual shaky win, and one in which he still made the same mistake when leading that has haunted him throughout his career, regardless of the opponent on the other end. In many comments that I didn't translate, they actually expected Togami to win more comfortably given they were up 2-0 in matches, therefore, it wasn't so much about OJS that overperformed but Togami that made life hard not just for himself but also for those that watch over him. It could've been a decent 3-1 win but his usual mistake made it a grueling 3-2 one. That's the problem.

 

[Bran]

Catching up: on what basis was Rin Mende selected? There are many Japanese women performing very well on the circuit, including Odo, Hashimoto and Sato recently.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

Catching up: on what basis was Rin Mende selected? There are many Japanese women performing very well on the circuit, including Odo, Hashimoto and Sato recently.

She won the one spot offered through an internal selection tournament to which many better players refused to play for some reason

 

[fore.n.back]

Opinions of OJS were actually quite poor among Tieba users in 2025 who kept tabs on his stats despite the fact that he beat WCQ in MS to eventually finish with a bronze at ATTC 2024, which I've noted before. It wasn't until those 2 wins over LJK and LSD (3rd man and 4th player in this century) and the 2-3 loss against WCQ at WTTC 2026 that views changed.

Togami needs that kind of convincing performance but he's failed to show much growth, which is the vibe given off by those Tieba opinions last night, and it turned out to be the not-so-usual shaky win, and one in which he still made the same mistake when leading that has haunted him throughout his career, regardless of the opponent on the other end. In many comments that I didn't translate, they actually expected Togami to win more comfortably given they were up 2-0 in matches, therefore, it wasn't so much about OJS that overperformed but Togami that made life hard not just for himself but also for those that watch over him. It could've been a decent 3-1 win but his usual mistake made it a grueling 3-2 one. That's the problem.

If only he could translate his club performance to major team events, at Oschenhausen he play like a goddamn ace

 

[just_one_more_chop]

I think noone at the japanese womens team can beat SYS at the moment (Miwa at a peak performance maybe). So they need two wins over WMY and one over Kuai Man. Miwa has quite a good chance to beat WMY. I dont see Hayata beating WMY but I could definitely see her challenging Kuai Man more than the rest. So they need one more win over WMY but with Odo or Sato missing, none of the three remaining players really has a clear advantage. For me Ito has the highest ceiling, Nagasaki uses more of her potential but both of them were better one or two years ago. I follow only the main events, so I have not seem a lot of Mende often but after a quick research I could not find something that would give her an advantage other than she might be new and a refreshing energy. Whoever they choose needs their best performace and a bad day for WMY. Personally (clearly biased, cause I like Ito and her style) I would go with Harimoto, Ito and Hayata and pray for the best.

The men are in a far better spot, as WCQ is obviously favored against anyone, but the others are beatable for Matsushima, Harimoto and Togami. If they perform well in those matches or if Matsushima gets the better of WCQ, there is definitely a way to gold. On a good day I could even see Togami be a challenger, in Bundesliga he played really solid so far. In London they pressured themselfes to much and LJK and WCQ handled them quite well. If they believe in themself and their teammates they definitely have a good chance for gold in my opinion.

 

[zeio]

A Tieba user turned to AI for predictions.

Whether JPN opts for Harimoto/Matsushima/Togami or Matsushima/Harimoto/Togami, CHN will field WCQ/WRB/LSD.

75% CHN will win
45% 3-1
30% 3-0
25% 3-2
65% WCQ > Matsushima
62% WRB > Harimoto
75% LSD > Togami

80% CHN will win
70% WCQ > Harimoto
50% WRB > Matsushima
75% LSD > Togami

See the image for more detailed info.

【各位球友大胆预测】今晚亚运会男团中国VS日本 排兵布阵预测 ([Calling all fans for bold predictions] Predicting the lineup for tonight's Asian Games Men's Team match: China vs. Japan)
https://tieba.baidu.com/p/11049531482

 

[zeio]

If only he could translate his club performance to major team events, at Oschenhausen he play like a goddamn ace

Exactly what Wu Jingping pointed out to those Chinese fangirls with zero insight into professional table tennis.

 

[fore.n.back]

A Tieba user turned to AI for predictions.

Whether JPN opts for Harimoto/Matsushima/Togami or Matsushima/Harimoto/Togami, CHN will field WCQ/WRB/LSD.

75% CHN will win
45% 3-1
30% 3-0
25% 3-2
65% WCQ > Matsushima
62% WRB > Harimoto
75% LSD > Togami

80% CHN will win
70% WCQ > Harimoto
50% WRB > Matsushima
75% LSD > Togami

See the image for more detailed info.

【各位球友大胆预测】今晚亚运会男团中国VS日本 排兵布阵预测 ([Calling all fans for bold predictions] Predicting the lineup for tonight's Asian Games Men's Team match: China vs. Japan)
https://tieba.baidu.com/p/11049531482

Highest pressure is on Togami now, the only way JPN can win solely depends on whether he can beat Lin SD, while Harimoto and Sora has to beat Wen

 

[zeio]

This is also another option CNT might do that I was thinking as well. Let’s see what CNT decide but if they need to protect LSD and put him at 3 then he really does not deserve the 2nd Olympics Singles slot if thats the case. Never seen a mens CNT player in the past that needs to be protected so bad like LSD. If the juniors don’t perform well and FZD doesn’t come back LJK should take the 2nd Olympics Singles slot.

ML: Ahem, I was WR2 yet protected this bad at ATTC 2009 and still lost the 3rd singles in straight games to none other than Kishikawa...

Ma Long vs Seiya Kishikawa Set 1, 2009 Asian Table Tennis Championships
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6vApYX_ZbA

Ma Long vs Seiya Kishikawa Set 2, 2009 Asian Table Tennis Championships
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvRIzZG1CpA
Ma Long vs Seiya Kishikawa Set 3, 2009 Asian Table Tennis Championships
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFHyHUYbtUk

 

[JackJohnson]

They fielded LSD at 3 and WRB at 2

 

[v100ev]

Matsushima fighting hard..
https://asiangamestv.com/game/pr-ch...th-asian-games-aichinagoya-2026-1790191901944 works with English commentators (no VPN needed for me at least)

 

[Janard]

Doesn't feel like Matsushita's game anymore, failing to take G4 even with two lucky net points...

 

[zeio]

MT F
CHN 2-3 JPN
WCQ 3-2 Matsushima (-5, -8, 9, 9, 9)
The 2 dead nets weren't enough to seal G4 and the match for Matsushima.
G5 10, 12, 32, 33, 43, 45, 65 TO for JPN, 75, 77, 87, 88, 108, 109, 119
WRB 1-3 Harimoto (-7, 8, -4, -9)
G1 44, 48, 711
G2 13, 83, 85 TO for CHN, 86, 96, 97 net for Harimoto, 107, 108, 118
G3 01, 11, 12, 32, 38, 48, 411
G4 50, 53, 63, 65 net for Harimoto, 85, 86 net for Harimoto, 87, 97, 911
Came down to the gap in experience.
LSD 3-1 Togami (9, -4, 7, 6)
G1 26, 46, 48, 88, 89 net for Togami, 109 net for LSD, 119
G2 03, 13, 17 net for Togami, 18, 28, 210, 410, 411
G3 01, 11, 14, 34, 36, 56 TO for JPN, 76, 77, 117
G4 02, 32 net for LSD, 72, 73, 93, 94, 104, 106 TO for CHN, 116
WCQ 0-3 Harimoto (-7, -4, -9)
G1 63, 68, 78, 711
G2 10, 13, 23, 28, 38, 310, 410, 411
G3 02, 12, 13, 33, 35 TO for CHN, 37, 57, 58, 98, 99, 910 dead net for Harimoto, 911
The drain from M1, if not injury?
WRB 1-3 Matsushima (-7, 8, -6, -8)
G1 02, 42, 44, 54, 59, 79, 711
G2 50, 51 net for Matsushima, 52, 82, 85 net for Matsushima and TO for CHN, 95, 96, 106, 108, 118 Matsushima pulled a Togami!
G3 10, 22, 23, 33, 36, 46, 49, 59, 510, 610, 611
G4 20, 22 endline edge for Matsushima, 27, 37, 38, 48, 49, 69 TO for JPN, 79, 710, 810, 811

 

[zeio]

Doesn't feel like Matsushita's game anymore, failing to take G4 even with two lucky net points...

And the San-Ei table and Nittaku ball benefited Matsushima more than WCQ, especially in the first 2 games. Even the DHS (?) net helped the former throughout.