Ma Long the GOAT?

[TTHopeful]

Ma Long has just won his 2nd World Championship title. Alongside his Olympic gold and 2 world cups this makes him level with Zhang Jike and Jan Ove Waldner. Ma Long has won a lot more World Tour's and won multiple Asian and Chinese Championships which are more difficult to win than the rest of the worlds tournaments.

Does this make Ma Long the 'Greatest Of All Time'?

What do you think?

 

[Baal]

Yes. I think so.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

I certainly feel he belongs in the same elite group as guys like JO Waldner and Wang Liqin.

Greatest of All Time? I am not going to go there because I simply don't think it is a useful category.

But I do think he has earned the respect of being talked about in that light. He is definitely one of the 3 or 4 greatest ever.

And without question he is the greatest player of our era.


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[ttmonster]

Please Not Again !!

 

[FelixTT]

He has earned, a place in the Olympus of Table Tennis, GOAT or NOT, it wouldnt matter, he is already there and nothing will change that.

 

[suds79]

Hard to say. I think the game has changed too much to really compare. Ball material & size almost makes it like a different sport on the pro level.

That being said, sports consistently evolve. Players today are doing techniques players simply didn't do back in the day. (ex: over the table BH loop in service return). Yes, those old time players would practice and have that shot today if they were young again & competing but all we can go on is what we've seen them do. So, yeah if I had a million bucks on the line and I needed someone to win a match for me, it'd be hard to argue you should pick someone else in history over Ma Long.

 

[Garrison]

He certainly has a domination we haven't seen before.

 

[TT4Life]

Absolutely the best of all time , he's not done yet , another single gold in Olympic 2020 will be super sweet

 

[rainneverever]

Ma Long has 19 world champion titles now (5 MS+ 1 MD+0 XD +13 team) in three major tournaments (OG, WTTC, World Cup), exceeding Ma Lin (5 MS+ 2 MD+2 XD +9 team) and Wang Hao (4 MS+ 2 MD+0 XD +12 team). I think his leading role in team events of OG (2012, 2016) and WTTC(2012, 2014, 2016) should be appreciated.

Not saying that he is greater than Jan-Ove Waldner now but definitely comparable.

BTW, Jan-Ove Waldner made the right prediction again on Ma Long winning WTTC this year.

 

[yoass]

So the one superseding Ma Long will be the goatbuster, then?

 

[TTHopeful]

Do you actually think Ma Long will be fit enough for Tokyo? That would be super wild. Has anyone ever won 2 gold in singles?

 

[perniciousnc]

I'd say, if he won another WTTC MS title / OG MS title, then his achievement has surpassed all the other players in history.

 

[rainneverever]

Only Deng Yaping and Zhang Yining won 2 OG gold in singles. None of the male players did and none of the male CNT players over 30 attended OG. However, CNT will not take the risk to have 3 fresh faces show in the OG team event. With 2016 OG gold and 2017 WTTC gold, Ma Long definitely has better chance than Xu Xin/Zhang Jike to be selected in 2020 OG team and singles event (Fan Zhendong needs to prove himself in 2019 WTTC).

Do you actually think Ma Long will be fit enough for Tokyo? That would be super wild. Has anyone ever won 2 gold in singles?

 

[SFF_lib]

Only Deng Yaping and Zhang Yining won 2 OG gold in singles. None of the male players did and none of the male CNT players over 30 attended OG. However, CNT will not take the risk to have 3 fresh faces show in the OG team event. With 2016 OG gold and 2017 WTTC gold, Ma Long definitely has better chance than Xu Xin/Zhang Jike to be selected in 2020 OG team and singles event (Fan Zhendong needs to prove himself in 2019 WTTC).

Good analysis. LGY would be living under FZD's shadow as both play similar style and at a similar age. Yet FZD has achieved a lot more.

 

[bricephan]

Well, we all know that ZJK would be greatest if he didnt get injury, didnt fall asleep during the game, wasnt too busy of making new jedi mind tricks, didnt forget to play his short game, didnt forget to clean and change the rubbers before the matches, etc., or ITTF didnt change the ball


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[ttmonster]

Why do you have to say these things ? Your guy has won , and Zhang Jike lost to a korean guy in the Round of 32 , can't you just celebrate and enjoy Ma Long's achievement .... I seriously don't understand what satisfaction you get from trashing another player who is also an all time great .. and going through this thread I haven't seen anybody claiming that ZJK is greater than Ma Long .. really unwarranted comments ...

Well, we all know that ZJK would be greatest if he didnt get injury, didnt fall asleep during the game, wasnt too busy of making new jedi mind tricks, didnt forget to play his short game, didnt forget to clean and change the rubbers before the matches, etc., or ITTF didnt change the ball

 

[Baal]

The way he won, down 9-7 in last game and playing hurt. Some of his touch shots to go with his power. His defense. No doubt in my mind at al. GOAT. By the way, He has now surpassed WLQ and ZJK and even JOW.

Barna essentially played a different sport. To me TT began around 1969.

 

[Baal]

I wonder if FZD will be the next Ma Lin? Greatest number 2 player in history, most of his career he was a nanometer below WLQ. Will FZD ever break through? I think for sure if he stays healthy. What a great playsr FZD is. The greatness of FZD is part of my argument for Ma Long as GOAT.

But we shouldn't forget the level ZJK acheived just a few years ago. I try to remember this and still come back to Ma Long.

 

[anchorschmidt]

Don't forget Waldner's silver medals . Two silvers in the WTTC in '87 and '91 as well as silver in the Olympic games in 2000 after beating Liu Guoliang and Samsonov and giving Kong Linghui a real run for his money in the finals.

 

[Baal]

I also remember lots of times Waldner lost to lesser players in relatively unimportant events. Ma Long does not do this.