One week after Olympic Games started, the table tennis project was officially launched. The first one was naturally the mixed doubles project that International Table Tennis Federation strongly supported.
When International Table Tennis Federation insisted on putting mixed doubles at the front of all events, it was actually to suppress Huaping, because they believed that mixed doubles was a new event, and Huaping had no obvious advantages and was most likely to overturn.
Once it overturns, it will affect confidence and morale, leading to the possibility of accidents in Huaping's subsequent specialty projects.
But in fact, after German Open in July, International Table Tennis Federation knew that they had failed, because with the rise of Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan's special style of play, mixed doubles has become the most unsuspicious advantage event of Huaping.
At the end of September World Table Tennis Championships, Lin Zijun and Zhen Jing were reborn from the ashes. Taiwan Island Combination shined, which temporarily restored a little confidence in International Table Tennis Federation. However, Wang Chao first defeated Luo Jiu in a shocking battle., then came to the mixed doubles final with the power of Men's Singles champion. Even though Tang Yuanyuan performed mediocrely, he still carried a strong solo and defeated Taiwan Island Combination with a big score of 4:1. Lin Zijun, who had high hopes from everyone, completely lost its luster in front of Wang Chao.
At this point, Mixed Doubles has become useless. International Table Tennis Federation is riding a tiger this year and can only hold his nose and acquiesce that Huaping will win one more gold medal.
However, they have already discussed internally in advance that they must suppress mixed doubles starting next year. No matter what, they will never let mixed doubles compete in Olympic Games four years later.
There are only 16 groups of players in this mixed doubles event.
This is also in line with what was said before. The bigger the competition, the stricter the quota review, because the weak teams and bottom players in the corners are not qualified to enter the highest-level international competitions.
Therefore, associations with multiple combinations must first make an internal choice.
Of course, China is Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan, Underworld Combination (Wang Yu and Gao Mingyuan) and Flying Sand Combination (Shen Sha and Lu Feiyang), and there is no possibility of seizing power.
Sakura Country was in a stalemate. Ichikawa Mima and Niuwa Xiaoxi defeated Zhang Benkuang and Hayata Hannah after an extremely difficult civil war and won the Olympic quota.
Bay Island is naturally Lin Zijun and Zhen Jing.
The Beautiful Country is Lilith and Kazik.
Minato dispatched Weng Chunting and Ai Qin.
Germany sent Sissifield and Solga.
Kimchi Country sent out Zhu Shixian and Xu Xiaoyuan.
Daehan Minguk is very interesting. When everyone thought that Che Songxin and Xian Youwen would be competing, they chose Kim Bong and Kim Jong, who were obviously outdated.
Huaping smiled knowingly and expressed his understanding. After all, under the special system of the national system, seniority is inevitable. Daehan Minguk may be more extreme in this regard due to the special national conditions.
In addition to the above eight groups, there are eight groups of players from eight countries: England, France, Singapore, the Peacock Country, Romania, Slovakia, Brazil, and Spain. However, because the team was formed relatively late and most of the players are not well-known, the outside world is generally not optimistic about them.
But there are also things worth mentioning. For example, among the three national teams of France, Singapore, and Spain, the female players are all of Chinese descent, and they are all retired players of the Chinese Table Tennis Women's Team.
This is also the overall current situation of women's table tennis in the world today.
Relatively speaking, the commercial value of women's table tennis is not as high as that of men's table tennis, and the competition is not fierce enough. Therefore, it does not develop well in countries around the world, especially in Europe and the United States. In addition, the Chinese table tennis women's team players themselves are strong enough, so usually as long as they are willing to change their nationality, they will immediately become the main players of the national team.
For example, Grandma Ni from Luxembourg is a typical representative among them.
Another thing worth mentioning is the Brazilian team's partnership. The male player is none other than the Brazilian Light Hook.
Hook originally had no interest in mixed doubles, but he couldn't resist the intrusion of the domestic table tennis association, so at the last moment he found a local female player he didn't know as his partner. They didn't officially meet until Olympic Village, and then they started to get in touch urgently. Hook didn't mind.
After all, he has so much physical strength and energy that he doesn't need it. Playing just one Men's Singles is relatively leisurely. So, it doesn't matter if he makes a casual contribution to his country. As for whether he can beat it when the time comes... it can only be said that table tennis is round. Maybe his opponent suddenly becomes seriously ill and chooses to withdraw from the game that day?
What's more, there are only 16 partners selected in total. As long as they participate, they will be in the top 16. If they accidentally pass one round and directly enter the top eight, Olympic Games, the name of the top eight, is quite bluffing.
Lots are drawn before the game, and the rules are not listed in detail. In short, when the lineup comes out, some people will be happy and some will be sad.
Taiwan Island Combination was placed in the upper half, and the Chinese table tennis team was placed in the lower half. This set the tone for the entire mixed doubles competition. If nothing else happens, these two groups of players should play in the finals.
Subsequently, the combination of Hong Kong District Combination, Sakura Country, and Kimchi Country were drawn into the lower half to join Huaping.
The Beautiful Country Combination, the German combination, and Kimchi Combination were drawn into the first half and will face the big boss of this area, Taiwan Island Combination.
Of the remaining eight combinations, the only one with a bit of combat effectiveness should be the the Peacock Country combination. After all, the Peacock Country Men's Singles's first brother, Gananaka, has a good record in the international arena recently. It can be said that it has made rapid progress and has entered the top 30.
In the end, the the Peacock Country combination entered the bottom half, while the temporary combination of the Brazilian team led by Hook entered the top half.
From the next day, the fighting started.
Compared with any other table tennis competition, Olympic Games's table tennis competition has one of the most fundamental differences, in addition to the difference in scale and gold content, that is, the schedule is long enough and the players have sufficient preparation time. After all, the entire Olympic Games will be held for more than half a month.
Therefore, a top 16 mixed doubles team will have to play for three full days. All combinations can analyze their opponents in detail and come up with the most targeted tactics.
Well, the above is the ideal situation.
But in fact, with such a disparity between the strengths and weaknesses of the world table tennis world, so-called targeted research is really of little significance.
After all, if you give coaches from many countries a year, they won't be able to target them, because their technical and professional skills are really not that good, and no matter how good their strategies are, they can't make up for the fundamental gap in hard power.
So on the first day, the 16-to-8 match was completed, and there were basically no surprises. It was clear who should win and who should lose.
In the first half, Taiwan Island Combination, the German combination, and Kimchi Combination successfully advanced, while the Beautiful Country Combination was slightly upset and lost to the Brazilian team led by Hook.
The Brazilian Table Tennis Association is very excited, and Hook himself is also very excited, because he is really just here to play soy sauce, and the temporary running-in effect of the mixed doubles these days is also very poor. He and his female partner quarreled every day, and stepped on each other when they cooperated. He almost wanted to give up.
But in the end, the Beautiful Country Combination made serious mistakes and they successfully broke through, realizing their dream of "Olympic Games Mixed Doubles Quarterfinals".
The fighting in the lower half was more brutal.
First, Ichikawa Mima and Niuwa Xiaoxi of the Sakura Country combination met Zhu Shixian and Xu Xiaoyuan of the Kimchi Country combination, eliminating the latter 3:1.
Don't be surprised by this score. According to regulations, the Olympic Games mixed doubles event is a best-of-five-game system from beginning to end, which is different from the best-of-seven games in singles.
Then Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan drew Hong Kong District Combination Weng Chunting and Ai Qin, easily crushing them 3:0.
These are two exciting games with little suspense but full of intensity.
In the remaining two games, four rookie combinations completed two rookies pecking each other. In the end, two rookies stood out, forming a clear pattern of two strong and two weak in the lower half.
The amazing thing is that according to the matchup, the opponent of Tang Dynasty Combination in the next round will be the combination of Sakura Country. In other words, the two rookies will have to compete with each other for another round, and the winner will advance to the semi-finals. This is an absolute win.
After the mixed doubles match on the first day was over, Lin Zijun went directly to Wang Chao: "Can we practice?"
Wang Chao turned to look at Tang Yuanyuan. Tang Yuanyuan was too lazy to take care of it and was just playing with his phone there. The meaning was obvious: Aren't you the one who makes the decision on this kind of thing?
So Wang Chao nodded. "Of course."
Tang Yuanyuan raised her head at this time and looked from the mobile phone screen in front of her to Wang Chao's face. She keenly felt that there seemed to be some changes in Wang Chao. This change had happened for several days and seemed to have happened when the large army entered Olympic Village. However, she could not tell what it was exactly.
She only knew that with Wang Chao's character, before today, Wang Chao would have refused Lin Zijun's request.
After all, Lin Zijun seeks to practice together because Taiwan Island Combination will fight Kimchi Combination in the next round. Lin Zijun has never encountered Kim Bong and Kim Jong, so he is under pressure.
But Tang Dynasty Combination will play the Sakura Country combination in the next round. The opponent is a former loser. Tang Dynasty Combination has no pressure at all. In this case, why did Wang Chao agree?
Has he forgotten that Tang Dynasty Combination and Taiwan Island Combination will eventually have a battle?
The sparring session between Tang Dynasty Combination and Taiwan Island Combination that afternoon was very good. Lin Zijun was full of confidence when he left, obviously feeling that he had learned a lot of new things.
Tang Yuanyuan asked Wang Chao in private, "Aren't you afraid that he will use what you taught him to deal with you?"
Wang Chao smiled, "Don't worry, even if he learns it, he won't be our opponent."
Tang Yuanyuan refused. "But it's not good for us."
Wang Chao glanced at him and asked her, "Don't you think it would be more interesting to fight with a stronger opponent?"
Tang Yuanyuan rolled her eyes and didn't want to continue talking. She felt that there must be something bad in Wang Chao's belly.
The mixed doubles battle resumed the next day. In this round of 8 going into 4, Lin Zijun, who was encouraged by Wang Chao, actually performed better. He easily defeated Kim Bong and Kim Jong 3:0, which also made Lin Zijun breathe a sigh of relief.
Although it is currently recognized by the world table tennis community that Daehan Minguk's young player combination is stronger than the veteran combination, after all, the Jindalai Table Tennis Association officially sent a veteran combination, so Lin Zijun has to wonder if the Jindalai Table Tennis Association is hiding some big tricks.
But it turns out that there is no ultimate move. Kimchi Combination's competitive state is almost exactly the same as what Wang Chao guessed yesterday. This makes Lin Zijun play very comfortably throughout the game. It can be said that almost all the reactions and strategies of Kim Bong and Kim Jong were simulated by Wang Chao yesterday.
So Lin Zijun stayed on the field sincerely waiting for Wang Chao's match and cheering for Wang Chao. He would not feel at ease until he saw Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan defeat the Sakura Country combination with his own eyes.
After all, Wang Chao's sparring last night was almost all about helping him think of ways to deal with Kimchi Combination. This made Lin Zijun feel full of gratitude in his heart, and he deeply felt the sincere friendship of Wang Chao, a good friend.
An hour later, Tang Dynasty Combination successfully defeated Ichikawa Mima and Niuwa Xiaoxi.
It's just that the game was not played smoothly. The total score was 3:1. Although Tang Dynasty Combination won, the effect of the game caused some doubts from the outside world.
"When we played seven games before, we were crushed 4-0. Why did we play so hard this time?"
"I feel that Wang Chao is not playing as rigorously as before. In some places, he is too casual, as if he just goes on the field without training."
"If Tang Dynasty Combination is of this level, he may not be able to beat the current Taiwan Island Combination."
"Is Huaping setting off smoke bombs? No way, they have such a huge advantage, and it would be very hypocritical to deliberately show weakness."
After the game, the reporter interviewed and wanted to dig out some hard news from Wang Chao, but Wang Chao spoke in mandarin, "The Sakura Country combination played very well. He is one of the strongest opponents in our mind. We are very satisfied with our win today. As for the score, you don't have to pay too much attention to it. After all, the level of mixed doubles around the world is developing. As time goes by, our advantage will definitely be further reduced."
These words made everyone at International Table Tennis Federation confused. They even wondered if there was something wrong with their own cognition.
Is the level of mixed doubles really improving around the world?
Is Huaping's mixed doubles advantage really diminishing?
If this is the case, then maybe we don't have to rush to cancel the mixed doubles event next year?
Why not... let the bullets fly for a while?
Only Lin Zijun feels guilty.
He believed that he must have been sparring with Wang Chao yesterday, which affected Wang Chao's performance in today's game.
After all, everyone is preparing for war, but Wang Chao has been simulating Kim Bong and Kim Jong yesterday, so where does he have time to think about Ichikawa Mima and Niuwa Xiaoxi?
These are two combinations with completely different playing styles.
All I can say is...Wang Chao, be loyal!
One morning passed, after 8-4 games, Taiwan Island Combination and the German combination were left in the first half, and the Huaping combination and French Combination were left in the second half. These are the mixed doubles semi-finals of Olympic Games this year.
In a sense, the arrangement of the top four is quite even. Two groups of Asian partners and two groups of European partners are equally matched.
But if you look closely, you really have no eyes to see.
The two groups in Asia are the favorites to compete for the championship, while the two groups in Europe are all weak, especially French Combination. If they can enter the semi-finals, it can only be said that God has blessed them and they have drawn a good lottery.
It is worth mentioning that the Brazilian combination led by Hook failed to continue their good fortune and was defeated by the German players Sissifield and Solga.
At that moment, the director's camera captured the fleeting joy on the face of off-field coach Rohlskov. It was originally a very subtle expression, but because of the close-up on the big screen, it was discussed by European fans and actually triggered a small war of words.
Many fans felt that Rohlskov was a coward because Hook refused his guidance and refused to play in Germany, so he showed such an expression of relief when he saw Hook eliminated.
Some fans also think that Rohlskov has always been expressive and is recognized as an old fox. He has countless thoughts in his mind every day, so it is completely understandable that he has a more expressive expression. You think he is thinking about Hook, but who knows if he has already thought of another thing that is beyond his reach? Maybe he was happy just because he won the quarrel with his wife when he went out in the morning?
Of course, these are irrelevant gossips.
Wait until the afternoon of the next day, that is, at 13:30 pm local time in Mexico on December 8, the mixed doubles semifinals will begin.
In the first half, Taiwan Island Combination vs. the German combination.
In the second half, Huaping combination vs French Combination.
Just half an hour later, Taiwan Island Combination defeated the German combination 3:0, a defeat without any suspense.
Another half an hour later, Tang Dynasty Combination defeated French Combination 3:0, which was also a no-brainer.
But please note that French Combination is actually much worse than the German combination.
So even though Tang Dynasty Combination also completed a clean sheet, fans still expressed a lot of dissatisfaction and doubts based on the specific content of the game.
"Tang Dynasty Combination What happened?"
"Wang Chao Why does it always make people feel absent-minded?"
"He actually didn't play badly. He had a few wonderful catches. I thought he was going to die, but he managed to save them. I was very curious at the time, when did he run so fast?"
"If you want to put it that way, he also hit a few offensive balls that were scary. If you didn't look at the intensity of the shots, I would have thought it was Hook who was playing the ball."
"But you have to admit that he really didn't play well."
"Yes, it was not good. Although there were many bright spots, there were also many mistakes."
"He used to be known for his stability. Even in the final against Luo Jiu, with such high intensity and such a terrifying opponent, he didn't show any flaws. But today, he played so reluctantly against the France team."
"Fortunately, I have my sister Yuanyuan."
"Yes, fortunately, I, Da Yuanyuan, can kill all men and women with one hand."
"If God had not given birth to me Tang Yuanyuan, Wang Chao would be like a long night."
"Your exposure was exposed upstairs. Your IP address is in the Olympic Village Chinese athletes camp. Tell me honestly, who are you?"
"I... I swear, I am definitely not Tang Yuanyuan."
"Okay, actually I am Luo Jiu."
"Don't lie to me upstairs. Your IP address shows that the area is over at the Chinese Female Athletes Camp."
"This... this..."
Thanks to "Looking Up at the Dust" for the 500 coin reward.