Men's Table Tennis Player Jeong Young-sik Blocked Again by China's Great Wall... Defeated by World No.1 Fan Zhendong

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Our men's table tennis mainstay Jeong Young-sik (Mirae Asset Securities) failed to overcome the wall of "world No.1" Fan Zhendong (China) and was eliminated in the men's singles quarterfinals at the Tokyo Olympics.

World No.13 Jeong Young-sik lost 0-4 (10-12, 9-11, 6-11, 5-11) to Fan Zhendong in the men's singles quarterfinals held on the 28th at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium in Japan.

With Jang Woo-jin (Mirae Asset Securities) eliminated in the round of 16 and Jeong Young-sik in the quarterfinals, the men's national team is left with only the final team event challenge.

Korean men's table tennis has not produced a singles medalist for four consecutive Olympics since Yoo Seung-min, the current president of the Korea Table Tennis Association, won the gold medal at the 2004 Athens Games.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics singles event, Jeong Young-sik suffered a comeback defeat to the "strongest" Ma Long (China) in the round of 16. He failed to overcome China's "Great Wall" for two consecutive Olympics and postponed his Olympic singles medal dream for another three years.

Jeong Young-sik, who has faced Fan Zhendong several times in world tournaments, could not defeat him this time. Jeong Young-sik has only beaten Fan Zhendong once, at the 2019 ITTF World Tour Korea Open singles event. As of this match, their overall head-to-head record stands at 1 win and 5 losses.

The match was decided by a narrow margin. In the first set, Jeong Young-sik maintained a tight balance at 4-4, 5-5, and 7-7, then took two consecutive points at 8-8, bringing victory within reach. However, he could not withstand Fan Zhendong's diverse offensive techniques, allowing a 10-10 deuce and eventually losing the first set 10-12.

In the second set, despite leading 7-5, Jeong Young-sik lacked stamina and was overtaken by Fan Zhendong, resulting in a 9-9 tie and then losing 9-11, falling behind 0-2 in the game score.

Jeong Young-sik aimed for a turnaround in the third set, but the momentum was with Fan Zhendong, who comfortably took the third and fourth sets 11-6 and 11-5, securing the victory.