In the early morning of August 25, the final battle of the men’s singles at the WTT European Grand Smash Sweden came to an end. The only “sole survivor” from the Chinese Table Tennis Team to reach the round of 16 in this event, World No.1 Lin Shidong, unfortunately suffered defeat. After a grueling seven-game duel, he lost 3-4 to Sweden’s Olympic silver medalist Truls Moregard, marking another missed opportunity for the Chinese men’s singles to claim a championship title, following their failure to win at the WTT Yokohama Champions.
With that, the WTT European Grand Smash Sweden officially came to a close. The Chinese Table Tennis Team secured three titles (women’s singles, women’s doubles, mixed doubles) and three runner-up finishes (men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles). There was joy for some, disappointment for others: below is a recap of the men’s singles final and the five events’ final results.
【Match Highlights】
Lin Shidong, born in 2005, has been ranked men’s singles World No.1 since February this year. But it is also from that point on that he has failed to capture another singles title, losing to domestic rivals Wang Chuqin, Liang Jingkun, as well as international opponents such as Hugo Calderano, Tomokazu Harimoto, and Qiu Dang. In this tournament, starting from the second round, he became the Chinese men’s singles “sole survivor,” advancing through the last 16, quarterfinals, and semifinals to reach the final and contest the crown.
Truls Moregard, born in 2002, currently ranked World No.7, has previously finished runner-up in both the Olympic Games and the World Championships. He has defeated Wang Chuqin before, but overall his record against Chinese mainstays has been unfavorable. In previous encounters with Lin Shidong, he had lost both (0-2). However, this time, with the advantage of competing on home soil, Moregard was expected to perform above his usual level. Therefore, the Chinese Table Tennis Team could not afford to underestimate him.
【Paths to the Final】
Lin Shidong: 3-0 Lin Wenzheng (Australia), 3-0 Assar (Egypt), 3-1 Walther (Germany), 4-0 Qiu Dang (Germany), 4-3 Simon Gauzy (France).
Moregard: 3-1 Ionescu (Romania), 3-2 Matsushima Hiroto (Japan), 3-0 Cho Daeseong (Korea), 4-2 Ahn Jaehyun (Korea), 4-0 Duda (Germany).
In the semifinals, Lin Shidong almost collapsed, trailing 1-3 in games against Gauzy and also falling behind in several rallies, but eventually scraped through 4-3. Moregard, meanwhile, encountered considerable challenges against Matsushima and Ahn Jaehyun, but breezed past Duda 4-0 in the semifinals (after Duda had just swept Brazil’s world champion Hugo). Playing at home, Moregard’s form was excellent and posed a serious threat to Lin.
Sanweisport-Professional Table Tennis Equipment Provider
Only 11.9 USD
- Taiji 210 bat is an allround premade high quality table tennis bat for the starters, it’s the best seller and the most popular bat of the Taiji Bat series.
- The blade is made by 7 layers of decent pure wood, coated by two sides of ITTF approved rubber makes it useable for competition, with a comfortable flared handle.
- It saves your time for selecting from thousands of combinations and just gives you the right one with great quality/price ratio.
- 2-Stars Table Tennis Bat is perfect for amateur gamers !
- If you are interested in table tennis equipment, you can visit our Sanweisport homepage to select the most professional table tennis equipment. We will provide you with the best table tennis blades, rubbers, bat, and other products!
【Match Process】
At the start, Lin Shidong struck first but failed to break Moregard’s defense and was counter-looped to concede the opening point. He soon pushed Moregard off the table to level the score, and continued forcing him back. However, tied at 7-7, Lin lost two points in a row, and after narrowing the gap by one, he could not turn it around, losing 8-11 and dropping the first game.
In Game 2, Lin again led 4-1 at the start, but quickly lost three points as Moregard caught up. The game then became a seesaw battle, with both players trading points. Later, Lin repeatedly attacked Moregard’s forehand position to break through, then controlled the rally with short pushes to force errors. He earned three game points at 10-7 and converted them to win 11-8, tying the match at 1-1.
In Game 3, Lin’s early lead was erased as Moregard tied it 4-4. Lin stuck to targeting the forehand gap, while Moregard grew impatient and even faulted on serve. Lin pulled ahead 8-4, but his own inconsistency saw him overtaken 8-9. Though he fought back to 10-10, his return lacked quality, allowing Moregard to counter. Lin lost 10-12, trailing 1-2 overall.
Game 4 saw Lin take the lead again, only to be tied at 3-3. Though he surged ahead once more, he failed to contain Moregard’s placement changes, and soon trailed 5-8. After clawing back two points, Moregard called timeout to regroup. Returning to the table, Lin missed an open shot and was punished by Moregard’s attack, slipping to 7-10. One more error sealed his fate, as he lost 8-11, falling behind 1-3 overall and pushed to the brink.
In Game 5, with his back to the wall, Lin unleashed his power. Relentless two-winged loop attacks repeatedly broke through, giving him a 3-0 lead. He extended it to 7-1, then 9-2, and at 10-4 he held six game points. With a fierce forehand winner, he clinched it 11-4, narrowing the deficit to 2-3.
Game 6 saw Lin again strike early, scoring three straight points with backhand flicks down both lines. But Moregard responded, narrowing to 3-4. Coach Wang Hao promptly called a timeout to steady Lin. Back in play, Lin was caught at 4-4, then rallied to 7-4. Yet he was reeled back to 9-8. Lin scored to reach 10-8 and had two game points, but Moregard fought back to 10-10 and even earned match point. Lin, however, held his nerve, edging 13-11, and forced a deciding game.
In the decisive Game 7, Lin struck first, leading 2-0, but Moregard fought back to 2-3. Lin leveled at 3-3, then produced an incredible net-cord save to pull ahead 5-3, later 6-4. Yet Moregard tied it 6-6. Lin led 8-6, but again was caught at 8-8. At 9-8, Lin conceded two points to fall 9-10 and face match point. Pushed off the table, his high-ball counterloop missed. Lin lost 9-11, ending the match in heartbreak.
Final score: Moregard def. Lin Shidong 4-3 (11-8, 8-11, 12-10, 11-8, 4-11, 11-13, 11-9).
Thus, Lin failed to claim the title, and the Chinese men’s singles once again came up empty-handed.
