China Smash 2026, Beijing, 10/1-11

[backspacer]

I asked Tony for more information about the incident and this is what he had to say (with his permission):

"A Word on the China Smash Flash Incident, by Tony’s Table Tennis

Following the recent controversy surrounding the Men’s Singles final at the China Smash, it has emerged that two Under-15 players from Chinese Taipei were involved in taking photos and videos with flash, affecting Sora Matsushima and Lin Yun-Ju.

From what I understand, the flash was not used deliberately to distract either player. Rather, it was an honest mistake that left the two young players from Chinese Taipei shocked and frightened by the situation that followed. While the team and parents have since issued apologies, my foremost wish is for the two young players to recover from the shock and fear they have experienced and to move forward from this incident with the support and understanding they need.

Before making a public apology, the team had already reached out to the Matsushima and Lin families to express their sincere regret and explain the circumstances. Both families acknowledged the communication. This was an important first step, and I believe it reflects the sincerity with which the matter has been handled.

Over the years, the team has maintained good relationships with various teams in Japan. Through my close relationship with the team management, and my understanding of the players and the values instilled in them by their coaches, I can speak to the emphasis placed on discipline and sportsmanship within the team. These are not bad kids. They made a mistake, at the wrong place and at the wrong time, and one that has unfortunately attracted significant attention.

I understand this incident will leave a lasting impression on the players and serve as a valuable lesson for them and others in the future. For those attending a WTT Smash event for the first time, it is worth remembering that the playing (Smash) arena can be considerably darker than at other WTT events. In the excitement of watching top-level table tennis, it is easy to overlook certain details. Spectators must take extra care to ensure that their camera and video settings are appropriate, including checking that the flash is switched off separately in both photo and video modes.

Flash photography has become a sensitive issue in table tennis, particularly as there have been incidents in recent months where its use has appeared deliberate. However, I believe it is important to distinguish between intentional misconduct and an honest mistake made by young players.

From what I understand, all parties have communicated sincerely since the event. Mistakes must be acknowledged, lessons must be learned, and the well-being of everyone involved must remain a priority. At the same time, we should allow young athletes the opportunity to learn and grow from their experiences.

Communication is key to maintaining any meaningful relationship. I sincerely hope that this incident will not damage the longstanding relationship between the teams, but instead become an opportunity for greater understanding and mutual respect. May the relationships between Chinese Taipei and Japanese table tennis continue to grow stronger, both on and off the court."

 

[pongfugrasshopper]

I don't doubt it was an honest mistake. But even with honest mistakes, the offender has to suffer the penalty. Fortunately, for them, there currently is no penalty imposed by the WTT. But for the sake of the game, I think this should change. Whether honest mistake or malicious intent, this should not continue to be happening.

Good to see an apology from the team for the honest mistake, but have we heard from Lin Yun-Ju's agent as well as the media who claimed Sora was using dirty tactics?

 

[JustANoob]

Yea I am just gonna call bullshit on the whole "Ups, we somehow forgot how phones have flashes", if we were talking about some old folk I could give it a pass, but the young are practically raised with these devices in their hands. Not to mention its not once that they use that flash.

I would gladly take my words back of someone can show a video of these accidental flashes happening while LYJ is on the side of the table where it can affect him.

 

[Lemonxz]

Yes, I did watch a lot of his matches during his run to world no1. During that period his hook serves were basically all hidden, pendulum serves were legal though. Timo Boll complained about his hidden serves during a match at the Singapore Smash two and a half years ago . The referee gave timo a point due to a hidden serve of Lin SD.
He has always been one of biggest offenders when it comes to hidden serve.

Which matches did you watch? I recently watched back on a lot of them (when he was at his best) and 95% of serves were very legal.

 

[zeio]

More comments from Taiwan on the incident.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/LTTF.TW/posts/28239426252402524/
桌球(Table Tennis)愛好者聯盟 ·
許文燕 · October 13 at 9:58 PM ·
看到使用閃光燈影響比賽的人，真的是台灣的小選手，真的教育失敗，他們自己都是打乒乓球的選手，真的不知道不可這樣做嗎？我們的教練真的要嚴厲去指責，不可以重重拿起輕輕放下。而且他們倆人好像輪流做這種事，真的很要不得不可取。真的呼籲WTT 主辦人，一定要禁止去看比賽的人，不能使用手機做拍攝的動作，要罰大錢、以後不讓他進場看賽或者直接趕出去。
(It is truly appalling to see that the people using camera flashes to disrupt the match were actually young Taiwanese players themselves—a clear failure of education. As table tennis players, surely they should know better than to do such a thing? Our coaches really need to reprimand them sternly; this cannot be treated lightly or glossed over. Moreover, the fact that the two of them seemed to take turns doing this makes the behavior completely unacceptable. I strongly urge the WTT organizers to strictly prohibit spectators from using mobile phones to take photos or videos during matches, and to enforce severe penalties—such as heavy fines, banning future entry, or immediate expulsion from the venue.)

Gilbert Chu · 1d
影片出來是台灣選手自己閃的燈, 然後繼續檢討譴責松島沒舉手比閃燈更可惡, 台灣人邏輯有沒問題啊
(The footage shows the Taiwanese competitor flashing the light himself, yet people continue to criticize and condemn Matsushima for not raising his hand—claiming that was even worse than flashing the light. Is there something wrong with the logic of these Taiwanese people?)
Wing Yan · 17h
Gilbert Chu 他們第一時間就是罵中國球迷沒素質，亂罵一頓就沒事似的發一堆其他觀點角度的，污蔑別人後沒有覺得不妥，不道歉不愧疚，只覺得沒面子，還覺得台灣人自己很有素質，這些只是少數的小屁孩行為，其實由他們開罵第一句開始，就污蔑了松島和中國球迷
(Their immediate reaction was to lash out at Chinese fans, accusing them of lacking class; after spewing abuse, they would casually move on to share opinions from other perspectives, feeling no sense of impropriety, offering no apologies, and harboring no guilt—only a sense of wounded pride. They even convinced themselves that Taiwanese people are inherently cultured and that such behavior was merely the work of a few immature brats. In reality, the moment they fired that first insult, they had already disparaged both Matsushima and the Chinese fans.)

Tony Zhu · 1d
謝謝小將
讓世界看見
台灣人的素質跟中國人一樣😅
(Thanks to the young players,
the world can now see
that the character of Taiwanese is just like that of the Chinese 😅)

黃傑克 · 18h
真象越辯越明，原兇也找出來了，不要再怪罪松島或昀儒，整場觀眾席就這兩位在‘’放閃‘’，他們不是在拍照，而是故意開燈干擾，連續好幾次，完全是‘’小屁孩‘’心態。
結果屁孩是穿‘’中華台北‘’的制服，話說重ㄧ點，穿上國家隊制服，你就是代表國家，行為舉止要更謹慎些，不要讓日本人再認為，我們落後他們20-30年。
(The truth has become clear through the ensuing discussion, and the actual culprits have been identified; there is no need to blame Matsushima or Yun-Ju. Throughout the match, those two were the only ones in the stands "flashing off"—they weren't taking photos but were deliberately turning on their lights to cause a disturbance. They did this repeatedly, displaying a completely childish mentality.
As it turns out, these "brats" were wearing "Chinese Taipei" uniforms. To put it bluntly: when you wear the national team uniform, you represent the country. You need to conduct yourself with greater discretion—don't give the Japanese any more reason to think we are lagging 20 or 30 years behind them.)

阮翔 · 19h
台灣人自己不要雙標，好好檢討，小林選手也不希望這樣贏得比賽
(Taiwanese shouldn't apply double standards; they need to reflect on this properly. Athlete Lin himself wouldn't want to win a match this way)

張宇翔 · 13h
開閃光燈的是台灣15歲青的范仡力 吳沅鍇
(The ones who turned on the flash were 15-year-old Taiwanese youths Fan Yi Li and Wu Yuan-Kai)

May · 17h
很多雙標的人，如果是大陸球迷的話會被台灣的媒體和青鳥罵
(Many people who hold double standards—if they were fans from the mainland—will be berated by Taiwanese media and "Blue Bird" supporters)

[賽事] 2026中國大滿貫賽10/1-10/11
https://www.ptt.cc/bbs/tabletennis/M.1790660359.A.168.html
推 killerbbt: https://i.verb.tw/MfPldjDY.jpg 10/12 10:38
→ killerbbt: 中國觀眾就是這樣沒水準，可以去看原影片，特地挑松島 10/12 10:38
→ killerbbt: 要回球閃，不是第一次了 10/12 10:39
→ speedshuffle: 這種觀眾就不能把它BAN掉嗎，就別讓他進場了。 10/12 12:00
→ haopig: 這招對中國沒用，他有的是其他人繼續搞你 10/12 13:19
→ haopig: https://i.imgur.com/IxwkAbo.jpeg 10/12 18:19
→ haopig: 前面推文說松島捏造故意的都該出來道歉了 10/12 18:20
推 pita30: 有人影片到用閃光的是台灣小選手，如果是真的還真丟臉丟 10/13 23:04
→ pita30: 到國外了 10/13 23:05
推 rakuma: https://reurl.cc/XxbO5e 10/13 23:48
噓 iwkdyykj: 結果好像是中華隊員？這樣是故意的吧？怎麼可能不知道 10/14 01:06
→ iwkdyykj: 不能用閃光？太噁心了…. 10/14 01:06
→ killerbbt: 看影片從10比8就開始閃了 所以10比9松島才抗議 10/14 08:16
→ haopig: 應該就是去打U15、U19那兩位，剛剛其中一位的家長還在Lin 10/14 08:28
→ haopig: e桌球閒聊群組上面道歉了 10/14 08:28
...
→ haopig: 兩位的家長都出來道歉了，當然就是真的了 10/14 13:05
→ haopig: 現在就是無法判斷到底是故意的還是不小心的，小孩跟家長 10/14 13:06
→ haopig: 當然都會說是不小心的，事實也只有他們兩位自己知道 10/14 13:07
推 Kanojyo: 建議禁賽禁一年吧 有在打球還搞這種烏龍 10/14 17:37
推 ilovejessica: 都被拍到閃三次了，還能說出可能是不小心的到底什 10/14 17:44
→ ilovejessica: 麼邏輯？ 10/14 17:44
...
→ pita30: 道歉看起來也挺沒誠意的，連三次發球瞬間才閃能說是誤觸 10/14 21:14
→ pita30: 這種道歉法幾天後中國日本只會燒更大，整個國家形像都賠 10/14 21:23
→ pita30: 進去了 10/14 21:23
...
→ pita30: 修正一下，不是三次都發球瞬間閃的 10/14 21:27
(Upvote killerbbt: https://i.verb.tw/MfPldjDY.jpg 10/12 10:38
→ killerbbt: Chinese spectators are just so classless; if you watch the original video, they specifically singled out Matsushima 10/12 10:38
→ killerbbt: to flash him while he was trying to return the ball—it's not the first time this has happened 10/12 10:39
→ speedshuffle: Can't they just ban spectators like that? Just don't let them into the venue. 10/12 12:00
→ haopig: That tactic doesn't work against China; they have plenty of other people to keep messing with you 10/12 13:19
→ haopig: https://i.imgur.com/IxwkAbo.jpeg 10/12 18:19
→ haopig: Everyone who claimed earlier that Matsushima was making it up or doing it on purpose should come out and apologize 10/12 18:20
Upvote pita30: Someone's video shows the person using the flash was a young player from Taiwan; if that's true, it's truly embarrassing 10/13 23:04
→ pita30: on the international stage 10/13 23:05
Upvote rakuma: https://reurl.cc/XxbO5e 10/13 23:48
Downvote iwkdyykj: Turns out it was a player from the Chinese Taipei team? That means it was intentional, right? How could they not know 10/14 01:06
→ iwkdyykj: that using a flash isn't allowed? That’s absolutely disgusting... 10/14 01:06
→ killerbbt: Watching the video, the flashing started at 10-8, which is why Matsushima only protested at 10-9. 10/14 08:16
→ haopig: It must be the two players who competed in the U15 and U19 events; one of their parents just apologized 10/14 08:28
→ haopig: in the Line table tennis chat group. 10/14 08:28
...
→ haopig: Parents of both players have come forward to apologize, so it’s definitely true. 10/14 13:05
→ haopig: Right now, it's impossible to tell if it was intentional or accidental; the kids and parents 10/14 13:06
→ haopig: will naturally claim it was an accident, but only the two of them know the actual truth. 10/14 13:07
Upvote Kanojyo: I suggest a one-year ban; pulling a stunt like that when you actually play the sport... 10/14 17:37
Upvote ilovejessica: They were caught flashing the signal three times—how can anyone still argue it might have been an accident? What kind of 10/14 17:44
→ ilovejessica: logic is that? 10/14 17:44
...
→ pita30: The apology doesn't seem very sincere either; flashing the light right at the moment of the serve three times can hardly be dismissed as an accidental touch. 10/14 21:14
→ pita30: Apologizing this way will only fan the flames between China and Japan in a few days; the country's entire image is being 10/14 21:23
→ pita30: sacrificed. 10/14 21:23
...
→ pita30: Let me correct that—it wasn't flashed at the moment of the serve all three times. 10/14 21:27)

 

[zeio]

I am glad the CTTTA apologized. But, those players should have known better than to use flash given that it's been a known problem at a number of tournaments. Do a test recording to make sure before you record the real thing.

In case it wasn't clear, it was not the CTTTA that apologized, it was the club/team that those 2 youth players are under. The CTTTA merely "forwarded" their apology, hence "spineless".

 

[piligrim]

No opinions from tieba users?

 

[NetProphet]

I know many coaches who felt Ma Long had one of the best backhands in the world, so these things do have subjectivity in them. Ma Long was very technically sound and could execute all the shots. He just didn't do all of them because the backhand flick did not really fit his game.

I hear you, and of course, Ma Longs BH was bloody good and there are plenty of matches (just forgotten about matches, against those outside the top 5) where he never had issues there. It's really only FZD and that level of opponent where it's a discussion of weakness but that applies to almost every other player as well so 🤷
We're talking about judgement at the absolute highest level here, which I'm not fit to give in terms of technique and outright tactical implementation etc.
It's completely relevant when you say about BH flick not suiting his game. The general consensus on reasoning here I believe is that's because he has the best FH in the game and so it made absolute sense to gear everything towards using that as much as possible because nobody could live with it.

Tactical and % play decisions are made based on minute levels of detail and curtailing that FH just never made any sense.
And of course FZD didn't have that to the same degree in his game, his FH was never the differentiator to the level that MLs was but FZDs BH was (is) awesome and to me he is still the best two winged looper I have ever seen.
Only saying all of this to finish with, FZD has a 'great' BH.
By this measure I don't think Truls does.
That's not not because Truls doesn't power loop but I would place FZDs blocking, flicking and Chiquita above Truls also, it's better everywhere. And my contention is that FZD didn't chop block on that side because he never feared being beaten there. Truls will mix things up because he's not going to go toe to toe with players when he knows they're better (in outright attack) than him on that side. So chop block and disruption become the antidote. Even ML liked the odd chop block 😊
I guess I'm not saying anything ground breaking or controversial here but just explaining why I even chimed in with my first post on this.
If Truls had a BH like FZD he would have won much more by now and I think their Olympic final really highlights who was superior on that side.

From a technical standpoint, Truls doesn't have a great backhand... but he has done a lot of work to make it serviceable and very importantly, his opening backhand topspin vs backspin is extremely nasty and high spin and he also has a decent no spin variation. Moreover, many players struggle to gain an advantage on him either backhand to backhand and even sometimes topspin, even when he doesn't chop block.

I agree, many players do struggle but when it comes to the crunch I still see it as an area where he has a crucial inferiority to the few (those outside the many) and they find advantage.

The biggest gap is that literally, his grip and the fact he doesn't really change it makes it virtually impossible for him to chiquita at a high level. I think this, more than anything else, defines his backhand limitations.

I'd imagine that's a choice though, presumably based on a dislike (using this word loosely) for the shot because he has a touch and technique that must surely mean he could have developed that of he had wanted to?

But having seen how hard it is for many good players to break him down in backhand rallies, I don't think the way his backhand is regarded does it justice.

Im not saying that Truls has a rubbish BH, I don't regard it that lowly. Maybe he had it as solid as MLs was and doesn't get the credit? 🤷
But I still never look at him and think what a great BH.
I tend to think how good would he be if his BH was just a bit better!
If he could weaponise it just a little more to hit a few more outright winners, turn a few narrow losses into narrow wins and rack up a few more titles.
What else is actually missing in his game?

 

[JackJohnson]

In case it wasn't clear, it was not the CTTTA that apologized, it was the club/team that those 2 youth players are under. The CTTTA merely "forwarded" their apology, hence "spineless".

CTTTA should have made an announcement themselves rather than forwarding what the club/team the 2 Chinese Taipei juniors are at. I felt both the announcement from the club and CTTTA was not sincere and that more needed to be said. I’m not sure what was said in the meeting between Matsushima and the 2 Chinese Taipei juniors whether there were financial penalties that needed to be paid to Matsushima.

Who is LYJ agent that I see people keep talking about who made comments that Matsushima was faking about the flashes happening?

Are yellow cards going to affect his record or only if you receive multiple yellow cards that turn into a red card in the same match will be recorded?

 

[zeio]

CTTTA should have made an announcement themselves rather than forwarding what the club/team the 2 Chinese Taipei juniors are at. I felt both the announcement from the club and CTTTA was not sincere and that more needed to be said. I’m not sure what was said in the meeting between Matsushima and the 2 Chinese Taipei juniors whether there were financial penalties that needed to be paid to Matsushima.

Who is LYJ agent that I see people keep talking about who made comments that Matsushima was faking about the flashes happening?

Are yellow cards going to affect his record or only if you receive multiple yellow cards that turn into a red card in the same match will be recorded?

Considering JTTA remained silent on the MTO incident at WTT CS Yokohama 2025, I don't expect CTTTA to be different here. Both are spineless compared to CTTA, which has decided to take on responsibilities that should've rested with WTT. Those fangirls were not and should not be within CTTA's scope of "jurisdiction", unlike the players in question here, donning a uniform that has a flag. They were not here solely representing their own club when they had to sign up through CTTTA, which is stipulated by ITTF/WTT.

WTT keeps them recorded but yellow cards aren't carried over between matches/tournaments, AFAIK.
https://www.worldtabletennis.com/Po...-----------FNL-000100----------&type=official

The Instagram of 黃曼昕/Huang Man-Xin, LYJ's agent:
https://www.instagram.com/hmanxin/
What she posted:
https://weibo.com/3582319641/RmEbtaMS4
The apologies by one of the parents:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/LTT...4319028384&reply_comment_id=28247136714964811
https://www.facebook.com/groups/LTT...4319028384&reply_comment_id=28247304218281394
https://weibo.com/3582319641/RmEKElaoo (carbon copy)
The pinned X post by Matsushima's mom, quoting another X post with the clip recorded by a Chinese fan:
https://x.com/soratoamikuaira/status/2110021644916060283

 

[NetProphet]

Right, here's the longer video showing 3 separate flashes consecutively on reddit. LYJ looks frustrated so I doubt he was involved. I'd like to give those kids the benefit of the doubt as well, looks like they were taking pics with the flash in between points as well so they probably just don't know how to turn off the flash.

https://www.reddit.com/r/tabletennis/s/1nvSCfFb3x

Taking pics
At 9:9
In the 7th.
They've had an hour to take a thousand pics before now and also to have the flash turned off.
If the flash goes off at that point of the match, it is almost certainly deliberate

 

[zeio]

I take it they still "sold at a loss" with USA GS and EUR GS?

China Smash 2026 Delivers Its Strongest Edition Yet
https://www.worldtabletennis.com/description?artId=6710

Driving tourism and economic impact

In its third year in Beijing, China Smash has become a major driver of tourism and regional economic development, while connecting communities and promoting local culture.

• 88,000 tickets sold, generating RMB 73.85 million in ticket revenue
• Almost 72,000 spectators, with around 80% travelling from outside Beijing
• More than RMB 147 million in direct economic revenue
• 864,000 visitors to Shougang Park from 1-11 October, spending approximately RMB 38.2 million