More table tennis fireworks as the WTT Champions Macao kicks off!

Get ready for another huge table tennis instalment as the WTT Champions Macao now enters its last 32 phase! The event started on 17th April and will conclude on 23 April, with a combined prize pool of 800,000 USD on offer and 1,000 World Ranking points waiting at the top of the podium for the champions, so a lot to play for!
 

Macao is hosting its second WTT Champions event, after last year's spectacular show. In 2022 it was Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha that took down the Men's and Women's Singles titles respectively and both will be stepping out to mount a title defence this time around. 

However, Men’s World No.1 Fan Zhendong heads to the event as the top seed and is coming in hot. He looks truly unstoppable at the moment; he took the crown this week at WTT Champions Xinxiang and also won the singles silverware at Singapore Smash 2023. Can he make it three WTT Series 2023 titles in a row in Macao? 

Women’s World No.1 Sun Yingsha, who won last year's title, also heads to the event as the top seed and like Fan Zhendong, took the crown this week at WTT Champions Xinxiang having also won the singles silverware at Singapore Smash 2023. Can either player be stopped? Only time will tell.

In the Men’s Singles, there are certainly a few players who will fancy their chances at trying to topple the tenacious No.1 player. Wang Chuqin will look to make a strong title defence. He’s racked up a superb 80% win rate so far this year and no doubt will be one of the favourites with the fans to lift the silverware. The World No.2 will look to bring back his 2022 form as he starts his path back to the top of the podium against Andrej Gacina.

Ma Long, considered by many to be the greatest player of all time, will also make his appearance in the round of 32 stage against African superstar Quadri Aruna. Last month at the Singapore Smash he lost in the final against Fan Zhendong, so he will be hoping to get some revenge in this tournament, but can he do it? In the 2023 China trials for the World Table Tennis Championships, which also took place last month, Ma Long did manage to beat Zhendong 3-0, so can he bring that kind of form to Macao?

Another player to watch out for is Chinese prodigy Lin Shidong. He has just turned 18 but has unbelievable potential, having reached the quarter-finals of the tournament of Xinxing last week. In that tournament, he was only defeated by eventual champion Fan Zhendong, in an explosive game where he put the World Number 1 under unbelievable pressure, going toe-to-toe with him and only losing 4-3, while having 3 match points of his own. He faces Tomokazu Harimoto in the round of 32, let’s see if he can bring the last tournament’s form into this one, and produce some magic!

In the Women’s Singles, World No.1 Sun Yingsha looks seemingly invincible as she attempts to defend her title in Macao. At the time of writing, Sun hasn't lost a match since July last year and will look to keep that ball rolling as she steps out against Hana Matelova in the round of 32.

Hoping to put some pressure on World No.1 will be a mix of leading Chinese players set to thrill the crowd into frenzy. These include World No.2 Wang Manyu, World No.3 Wang Yidi and World No.4 Cheng Meng, all of whom will be hoping to put pressure on their compatriots and take home the glory. However, a few days ago Sun Yingsha defeated Wang Yidi 4-1 in the final of the tournament in Xinxiang, and back in March Yingsha overcame Wang Manyu 4-0 at the Singapore Smash. So, will anyone be able to come close to the number 1 seed? 

Qian Tianyi will also be another player looking to stake her claim in the race to bring home the bacon. The #5 seed had an excellent tournament in the Singapore Smash last month, losing only in the final to Sun Yingsha, so she will be hoping to go one further this time!

The Puerto-Rican playmaker, Adriana Diaz, will also be back in action in Macao and will be hoping to bring some flair and creativity to the table. The flashy superstar has always struggled to make it to the latter stages of major tournaments, however, she always brings out an exciting and innovative game to upset her opponents, and has proved to be a big fan favourite. She has just defeated her round of 32 opponent, Chen Szu-Yu, in a thrilling 3-2 encounter, so let’s see if she can continue her form and cause some fireworks to the big seeds in the tournament when she steps on to the table in her last 16 encounter!

The WTT Champions Macao is set up to be a phenomenal tournament, with all the best players in the sport taking centre stage. The result is still too close to call, but one thing is certain, the table tennis on display will be nothing short of magical!