Author: Sorin Petroj
This article will talk about the players who spent the most experience in place number one on ITTF World Ranking.
Firstly, the ranking list can be divided into the old one, which lasted from January 1987 to December 2000, and the new one, which starts in January 2001 and lasts until today.
Interestingly, in both eras of the ITTF World Ranking list, ten players spent at number one.
After that, we will show you the table with the players who spent the most time in the number one position. So, we will talk about the five best players from the old and new list of the ITTF points system.
Table of Contents
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OLD SCORING ITTF SYSTEM (1987 – 2000)
By the end of 1986, the ITTF was generally publishing an annual ranking of players based on results from previous World Cups.
Since the founding of the World Cup in 1980, the inclusion of table tennis in Olympic sports in 1988, and the founding of the ITTF World Tour in 1996, the rankings have been published several times a year during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Since the mid-1990s, the ITTF rankings have been published every month. In this old system, there was no clear way to score all the big tournaments.
Longest time on number 1 on ITTF ranking for top players from this era:
| Player | Country | Number of months on position 1 |
| Kong Linghui | China | 20 |
| Vladimir Samsonov | Belarus | 18 |
| Jan – Ove Waldner | Sweden | 17 |
| Jean – Michel Saive | Belgium | 8 |
| Liu Guoliang | China | 6 |
| Jorgen Persson | Sweden | 5 |
| Juang Jialiang | China | 4 |
| Wang Tao | China | 4 |
| Wang Liqin | China | 2 |
| Jean – Philippe Gatien | France | 1 |
Kong Linghui
According to the old scoring, the player with the most months spent at the top of the ITTF rankings is Kong Linghui. He is a former member of the Chinese national team, born on October 18, 1975, in Harbin, China.
Firstly, he is listed in the ITTF Hall of Fame. Secondly, he is currently the coach of the women’s senior national team of China. He spent 20 months in the number one position. Moreover, the series of 6 consecutive months is the longest he has achieved as the best in the world.
He used the shakehand way of holding the racket. Kong Linghui used strong topspins from both the forehand and backhand sides to an attacking style of playing table tennis. His strongest strength in the game was that he knew all the elements equally well.
Kong Linghui is the third player who managed to complete the table tennis “Grand Slam.” He mostly played with equipment from the manufacturer Butterfly. Apart from the fact that his showcases are full of trophies during his playing career, he continued to do so in coaching.
He won all possible medals with the Chinese women’s national team at the Olympic Games, the World Championship, and the World Cup. During 2007, he stopped actively playing this sport at the age of only 30 and dedicated himself to the coaching profession.
Greatest successes in singles:
Olympics: 1st place; Sydney 2000;
World Championship: 1st place; Tianjin 1995;
World Cup: 1st place; Nimes 1995.
Vladimir Samsonov
He was born on April 17, 1976, in Minsk, Belarus. Samsonov is the best Belarusian table tennis player of all time. His nickname is “Government.” He started playing table tennis at the age of seven.
Vladimir Samsonov spent 18 months in the number one position, putting him in second place on the ITTF World Ranking list. So, according to the number of months spent as the Best Table Tennis Player in the world. The longest series he achieved in the number one position was 9 months.
Firstly, he is also right-handed and uses a shakehand style of holding the racket. Offensive-minded style of play, but not too offensive. Secondly, Samsonov has a wide range of styles, likes to play at the table. However, his main weapon in the game is a block, and he just seems to play against the wall when you play. He is uncomfortable, and with the first opening of the game with big rotations and precise balls, he torments every opponent.
He is sponsored by the Tibhar brand and is their trademark.
Racket: blade, Tibhar Samsonov Force Pro Black Edition. The forehand and backhand rubbers use the Tibhar Evolution MXP. Club: Fakel Gazprom Orenburd from Russia.
Above all, Samsonov is the winner of 27 Pro Tour tournaments which puts him in second place behind Ma Long. He competed in the previous 6 Olympic Games, from 1996 to 2016. Although 45 years old, he currently ranks 28th on the ITTF world ranking.
Greatest successes in singles:
World Cup: 1st place; Sjaolan 1999, Kurmajor 2001 and Moscow 2009
Jan – Ove Waldner
Former Swedish table tennis player, born on October 3, 1965, in Stockholm, Sweden. So, his nicknames are “Evergreen Three” and “Mozart Of Table Tennis.” Listed in the ITTF Hall of Fame.
He is third in the number spent at place number one at 17 months. The series of 10 consecutive months is the longest, which he achieved as the best in the world. Also, the way the racket is held, the shakehand style. It’s the highest quality service, one of the best of all time.
Apart from the service, an important part of the game was his block, with which he could drive the opponent crazy. His sense of the game and the perfect prediction of points are his best skills. He played for clubs: Spårvägens Golf, ATSV Saarbrücken, Ängby SK, Kalmar BTK, TTC Röhn-Sprudel Fulda Maberzell, Spårvägens BTK.
As for the racket, it uses the DONIC brand. Blade Waldner Senzo Carbon; Rubbers, Coppa JO Gold on the forehand side, and Coppa JO Platinum on the backhand side. He is the first of the five listed to win the “Grand Slam.” Waldner managed to do that in 1992 in Barcelona. In the same year, he was named Swedish Athlete of the Year. Most importantly, He is the only non-Chinese player to have completed these three tournaments.
Greatest successes in singles:
Olympics: 1st place; Barcelona 1992.
World Championship: 1st place; Dortmund 1989 and Manchester 1997.
World Cup: 1st place; Chiba 1990.
That is why Waldner is not only considered one of the best players in the world who have played this game, but he is also the best European player of all time. At the end of 2007, he ended his national team career, and on February 11, 2016, he officially announced that he had finished his playing career.
Jean – Michel Saive
Jean-Michel Saive was born on November 17, 1969, in Liege, Belgium. He is the best player who has ever played in Belgium. His nickname is “Big Saive.” Saive spent 8 months in the number one position on the ITTF World Ranking list.
He used the products of the company STIGA, which was his sponsor. So, his blade is: Stiga Clipper CR WRB, and rubbers on the forehand and backhand sides were used by the STIGA Calibra LT. A right-handed player who used the shakehand style of holding the racket.
He was known for his good movement, great backhand block, and fantastic forehand. His game was based on half-distance and distances from the table, where he played long and beautiful points. He joined the Belgian national team in 1983 when he was less than 14 years old.
Firstly, Jean Michel Saive performed at the 7 Olympic Games, which ranks him among the players with the most performances with Jorgen Persson and Zoran Primorac. Above all, he had the honor of carrying the Belgian flag at the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996 and Athens in 2004.
Greatest successes in singles:
European championship: 1st place; Birmingham 1994.
Jean Michel Saive played for the Belgian La Villette Charleroi for many years, with whom he has 6 ETTU Champions League titles. He won the 1994 European Championship in Birmingham. Similarly, at the World Championship and the World Cup, he “only” reached second place in Gothenburg in 1993 and Taipei in 1994.
Saive said goodbye to the national team in December 2015, and in 2019 he said goodbye to playing table tennis at the age of 49. He is currently the President of the Belgian Table Tennis Federation.
Liu Guoliang
Liu Guoliang is a former Chinese national team player, born on January 10, 1976, in Xinjiang, China. His nickname is “Legend Liu.” Listed in the ITTF Hall of Fame. Liu is fifth in the number of first place on the ITTF ranking list.
Firstly, the way the racket is held, the penholder style. Secondly, he had a very offensive style of play based near the table. In addition to the fantastic movement, his strongest weapons were service (which, along with Waldner’s best ever in the world), strong forehand kick, and backhand block.
He liked to use STIGA and TSP equipment the most. Racket: He played with the STIGA Clipper blade. He used TSP Spinpips rubber on the forehand side, which had short fringes, making it very awkward. On the backhand side, he used a Yasaka Mark V rubber.
After the World Championship in Eindhoven, where he won first place, he became the second player to complete the “Grand Slam.” In 2003, he finished his playing career at the age of only 27 and dedicated himself to a coaching career.
Greatest successes in singles:
Olympics: 1st place; Atlanta 1996;
World Championship: 1st place; Eindhoven 1999;
World Cup: 1st place; Nimes 1996.
Apart from considering him one of the best players of all time, the same goes for his coaching career. Leading the Chinese men’s national team as a national team selector, he has won the Olympic Games, the World Championship, the World Cup. Also, he won the Asian Championships in singles, doubles, and team competitions several times.
In 2018, he became the president of the Chinese Table Tennis Association.
NEW SCORING ITTF SYSTEM (2001 – 2021)
After the scoring is determined, a new era of table tennis scoring in singles begins. During this period, it has been determined how many points the Olympic Games, World Championship, World Cup, and the ITTF Pro Tour tournaments carry each player.
Firstly, the ITTF World Ranking list is published every month. Moreover, the players who make up this list are, for the most part, Chinese players, and there are 7 of them (Ma Long, Wang Liqin, Fan Zhendong, Wang Hao, Xu Xin, Ma Lin, and Zhang Jike). Also, two of them are Germans (Timo Boll and Dimitrij Ovtcharov) and one Austrian (Werner Schager).
Longest time on number 1 on ITTF ranking for top players from the new era:
| Player | Country | Number of months on position 1 |
| Ma Long | China | 64 |
| Wang Liqin | China | 52 |
| Fan Zhendong | China | 26 |
| Wang Hao | China | 24 |
| Xu Xin | China | 23 |
| Ma Lin | China | 17 |
| Timo Boll | Germany | 11 |
| Zhang Jike | China | 7 |
| Dimitrij Ovtcharov | Germany | 2 |
| Werner Schlager | Austria | 1 |
Ma Long
Ma Long is a Chinese player born on October 20, 1988, in Anshan, China. His nicknames are “The Dragon,” “Captain Long,” and “The Dictator.” Listed in the ITTF Hall of Fame. Ma Long is the player who spent the longest time in position number one, as many as 64 months.
Firstly, from March 2015 to December 2017, he held the number one position (33 months in a row). Secondly, at the age of 15, he played in the Chinese Super League for the first time. Thirdly, he uses the shakehand way of holding the racket. Moreover, he is best known for his devastating forehand and fantastic movement.
Although many players told him opening the game after his serve was the strongest weapon, behind Ma Long is DHS equipment. Racket: Hurricane Long 5 blade. Rubbers: Hurricane 3 National at forehand and backhand sides. He is currently defending the colors of Shandong Weiqiao.
Many people even consider him the best player of all time. Similarly, Ma Long is the only player to have won 3 consecutive World Singles Championships (2015, 2017, and 2019). He is the last winner of the popular “Grand Slam.” So, he managed to achieve after Rio 2016.
Ma Long is the record-holder is that he has won 35 sets in a row and has 28 titles on ITTF Pro tours. So, he is the captain of the Chinese national team. He won all ITTF tournaments in singles. Above all, Ma Long is currently third on the ITTF rankings.
Greatest successes in singles:
World Cup: 1st place; Liverpool 2012, Halmstad 2015;
Wang Liqin
So, he liked to constantly combine and change table tennis rubbers and blades from various table tennis companies throughout his career. For example, he used blades Butterfly Timo boll spirit, Stiga Clipper CR, Rosewood V, DHS Hurricane King II, III. Wang Liqin also used DHS Hurricane II, III, TG III on the forehand rubbers and Nittaku Hammond on the backhand. Also, rubbers from the Tenergy series, etc. During his career, he played for Shanghai Shengxurong.
Greatest successes in singles:
Fan Zhendong
The table tennis player who is third in the number of spent in the first place on the ITTF World Ranking list. Fan Zhendong was born on January 22, 1997, in Gwangju, China. The nickname he got is “Little Fatty.”
At the age of 24, he is currently the leader of the younger generation. He spent 26 months at number one on the ITTF Rankings, which puts him in third place overall in terms of time spent as the world’s best player.
Firstly, he uses the shakehand style of holding the racket. A right-handed player who is extremely offensive, an all-round player of perfect technique with fantastic movement and opening of the game with a large rotation. Secondly, after the opening of the game, he tries to destroy every opponent with his strong and precise blows. Moreover, he likes to play at the table and at half distance.
STIGA has sponsored fan Zhendong for many years. Racket: blade, STIGA Infiniti VPS V. Rubbers, DHS Hurricane 3 National on the forehand and Butterly Dignics 05 on the backhand.
He currently plays for Sichuan Changhong Table Tennis Club.
For the first time on April 1, 2018, he became number one at the age of only 21, overtaking Timo Boll from the leading position. At the age of 19, he won the 2016 World Cup and became the youngest winner of that competition. Fan Zhendong is expected to be the next winner of the table tennis “Grand Slam.”
Greatest successes in singles:
World Cup: 1st place; Dusseldorf 2016, Paris 2018, and Chengdu 2019.
Its longest period in the first place is 15 months. Currently, in June 2021, he is first on the ITTF World Ranking list.
Wang Hao
Wang Hao was born on December 15, 1983, in Changchun, China. The former member of the Chinese national team is the head coach of the Bayi team, which competes in the Chinese Superliga. He is currently one of the assistants of this selection. Listed in the ITTF Hall of Fame.
Wang Hao is the fourth player to spend the longest time at number one on the ITTF Rankings with 24 months. He used the penholder style of holding the racket. In 1998, he joined the Chinese senior national team.
Since his appearance at major world tournaments, the world public has been intrigued by the fact that he shares both sides of the racket during attacks and defense against opponents. So, this was not typical for the Penholders (previously, they only played with the forehand side). During that period his backhand is considered the best of all the penholders who have played table tennis.
He liked to use DHS equipment the most. Racket: DHS Wang Hao Blade N656 blade, and DHS Skyline III Blue Sponge rubbers on the forehand and Butterfly Sriver Topsheet on the backhand side.
Although he is considered one of the best players in the 21st century, he still failed to complete the “Grand Slam.” His insurmountable obstacle was the Olympics. In all three tournaments in which he participated, he won second place in singles. For example, better than he was Ryu Seung Min in Athens in 2004, Ma Lin in 2008 in Beijing, and Zhang Jike in London in 2012. So, he is saying goodbye to the Chinese selection at the end of 2014.
Greatest successes in singles:
World Championship: 1st place; Yokohama 2009;
World Cup: 1st place; Barcelona 2007, Liege 2008 and Magdeburg 2010.
Xu Xin
The fifth player in the number of months spent in the first place is Xu Xin. He was born on January 8, 1990, in Suzhou, China. His nicknames are “Cloud Walker” and “Xuperman.” Listed in the ITTF Hall of Fame.
He spent 23 months in the number one position on the ITTF Rankings. He has 17 ITTF World Tour titles.
A left-handed player who uses the penholder style of holding the racket. For example, he is recognizable for his forehand (one of the best forehands in the history of table tennis). Also, he uses the excellent backhand side of the racket during block and spins for his fantastic movement.
For instance, Xu Xin has a long arm span that allows him to cover most of the table with a forehand. He likes the game at half distance and distance where he can easily reach his deadly forehand spin. He is sponsored by the Swedish table tennis company STIGA. Racket: blade, STIGA Dynasty Carbon Xu Xin Edition. Rubbers: DHS Hurricane TG2 Skyline Blue on the forehand and DHS NEO Hurricane 3 on the backhand.
Greatest successes in singles:
World Cup: 1st place; Verviers (Belgium) 2013.
Firstly, he became number one for the first time in January 2013, removing Ma Long from the ruling position. Secondly, Xu Xin is the true successor of Ma Lin and Wang Hao. The last one from penholders who was number one. Moreover, he plays for the table tennis club Shanghai Real Estate Group.
Above all, the longest series in position number one was from March 2014 to February 2015, more precisely 12 months. He is currently second on the ITTF World Ranking list.
