Table tennis: Swinging the racket billions of times, achieving a grand slam

Chapter 278 Chen Jin VS Wang Chuqin! Prelude to the semi-finals: The racket test controversy!
The match between Lin Shidong and Zhang Benzhihe has just ended.

"Chen Jin VS Wang Chuqin" instantly topped the trending search list.

One is a core player of the Chinese national table tennis team who is ranked number one in the world despite only reaching the top 32; the other is a penhold genius who has been undefeated for three months since his debut.

This match marked the second encounter between the two since the Macau Championship.

This naturally attracted a great deal of attention.

Such a grand occasion in the world of table tennis happened to fall on a Saturday.

In an instant, fans, sports enthusiasts, haters, and trolls all sprang into action.

Using Weibo as their battlefield and posts as their weapons, they fought fiercely, creating a bloody and chaotic scene.

"Go Wang Chuqin! Get revenge on Chen Taisun!!!"

"Protecting the world's best big head, 4000+ haters."

"Last time at the Macau Championship, I, Da Tou, had just finished the Olympics and wasn't in good form, which allowed someone to get a big advantage. This time, Da Tou will definitely win!"

"Go for it, Big Head! Let everyone see what the true strength of the world's number one really is!"

……

"Support Chen Jin, beat the top 32!"

"Go Chen Jin! Make all those who doubt you shut up."

"@Chen Jin, let's rebuild the glory of the straight grip!"

"Protect the glory of Chinese table tennis, and take down King Zhe!"

"In yesterday's match against Moregard, Chu Sheng's front-row technique has improved again. I wonder if Chen Jin can withstand it?"

……

at the same time.

Xuperman, Quan Shibao, Zhang Zhidao, Yin Hang Ping Pong... all the major live streamers are online.

Xuperman's live stream, in particular, reached a new peak in popularity.

Xu Xin grinned.

"Everyone, although Lin Shidong narrowly lost to Zhang Ben, it's okay, we're guaranteed to advance one of them to the finals."

Xu Xin rubbed his hands together. "The next match is the real highlight."

"Chen Jin vs. Big Head".

"Let me predict whether Chen Jin or Da Tou will advance to the finals?"

"Uh……"

Xu Xin looked troubled. "That's hard to say."

"When it comes to competitions, besides skills and tactics, the most important thing is your form and mentality."

"Chen Jin is in excellent form, but Da Tou also said in a previous interview that he is approaching this semi-final with the mindset of a challenger."

"So it's really hard to say who will win and who will lose."

"Let me state upfront that I'm not afraid of being criticized for saying the wrong thing, but rather that I genuinely can't predict the future."

One sentence was all it took to give him a life-saving buff.

Those who know the situation understand; there's no need to elaborate.

That's when.

The live stream camera focused on the scene.

Liu Guoliang, Qin Zhijian, Li Xun, Wang Hao and other national table tennis stars were all present and sat quietly to watch the match.

Even the Japanese team coaches, including Moregard, the Lebrun brothers, Yoshihito Miyazaki, and Seiya Kishikawa, were in the stands and did not leave.

There is no doubt that the duel between Chen Jin and Wang Chuqin is attracting a lot of attention.

"There are quite a lot of people."

Liu Guoliang looked around and smiled slightly, "The seats are all full."

Aside from Japanese fans.

Fans at the scene held up support signs and eagerly awaited the arrival of the event.

"what?"

A hint of surprise flashed in Liu Guoliang's eyes. "It seems Chen Jin has quite a few fans."

Unlike Wang Chuqin, who had a large female fanbase.

Chen Jin's fans include both men and women.

A Japanese man with a red scarf bearing the word "Victory" tied around his forehead was seen holding up a sign that read "Chen Jin, Fighting!" in Japanese.

"interesting."

Liu Guoliang tilted his head, squinted slightly, and turned to Wang Hao, saying, "Chen Jin's racket should be fine, right?"

"Not many, but there are some."

Wang Hao had a vague concern: "Compared to his main and secondary rackets, since it's a test racket, the backhand adjustment is a bit poor, and the power in the mid-to-long range is insufficient."

"Let's treat this as a test for Chen Jin."

Liu Guoliang said.

"Ah."

Wang Hao nodded.

While talking.

The lights were dazzling, and the music was rousing.

The contestants took the stage after being introduced by the host.

"Go Wang Chuqin!"

"Go for it, Wang Chuqin!"

……

"Chen Jin, keep it up!"

"Chen Jinjun, that was just done!"

……

The cheers from the audience were so loud that they seemed to rival each other.

In fact, the cheers for Chen Jin seemed to be surpassing those for Wang Chuqin.

In this foreign land, it seemed to have become Chen Jin's home turf.

Wow, that's fun!

Even Xu Xin found it somewhat unbelievable, "There seem to be quite a few fans of Chen Jin at the scene."

"There's nothing we can do about it."

Cheng Jingqi laughed and said, "After all, it's abroad."

I suspect you're implying something.

Xu Xin grinned mischievously.

"No no."

Cheng Jingqi quickly denied it, saying, "I just think that Chen Jin's ability to attract fans is a bit too strong."

"They've only been in the industry for a short time, yet they already have so many fans."

Xu Xin laughed and said, "She has both talent and good looks. Who wouldn't love someone like that?"

"Both players enter the court and examine each other's rackets..."

"what?"

Xu Xin suddenly widened his eyes, as if he had discovered something extremely unbelievable.

Seeing this, Cheng Jingqi asked, "What's wrong, Brother Xin?"

"I think I saw one of Xuperman's rackets." Xu Xin rubbed his eyes, a little unsure. "Am I seeing things?"

"Xuperman rackets?"

Cheng Jingqi also thought it was a bit far-fetched, "How is that possible?"

Xuperman rackets have indeed passed the ITTF certification, and as long as the testing is compliant, athletes can use them in competitions.

However, to date, very few people use Xuperman rackets.

In major competitions like this, there's even less chance to participate.

"I'm not entirely sure either, but at first glance, it does look a bit like it."

Xu Xin said, "Hey you, could you rewind the live stream a little?"

An assistant's voice came from off-screen: "Okay."

Immediately, a series of actions were taken.

The live stream was rewound one minute to the moment when Chen Jin and Wang Chuqin entered the stage.

Xu Xin stood up, put on his glasses, and stared at the screen with wide eyes.

"stop!"

Xu Xin suddenly shouted, "This is it!"

"Fuck!"

With a loud bang, Xu Xin slammed his hand on the table, causing the ornaments on it to tremble violently.

Xu Xin was already excited, pointing at the paused screen: "The blade Chen Jin used is our Xuperman racket!"

"Absolutely no mistake!"

At this moment, Cheng Jingqi also got up from his seat, leaned closer to the screen, and examined it carefully.

As Xu Xin said, the live broadcast camera zoomed in and gave Chen Jin's racket a close-up.

The Xuperman brand logo is on the end of the racket handle.

"It really is."

Cheng Jingqi asked curiously, "Hasn't Chen Jin always used the 301? Why did he suddenly switch to a Xuperman racket?"

"That's not the point."

Xu Xin's expression turned serious. "The important thing is that this blade is the one I gave to Chen Jin for testing."

"what?"

Cheng Jingqi was dumbfounded. "Try...try the rhythm?"

He certainly knew what a test racket meant.

Although it is not a defective or unfinished product, in a sense it is almost the same.

They simply cannot compete on the field.

Not only Cheng Jingqi, but also the viewers in Xuperman's live stream were shocked to hear that Chen Jin was actually using a test racket.

The number of comments on the screen instantly surged.

"Not long ago, I asked Zhang Jiahao to bring a test racket to Chen Jin."

Xu Xin continued, "After Chen Jin tried it out, he highly praised the forehand of this blade, but the backhand still needs further refinement."

"Based on Chen Jin's feedback, I am communicating with the manufacturer to readjust the backhand grip..."

Hear this.

Cheng Jingqi gasped and said in a deep voice, "So, this test racket has a flaw in its backhand?"

"Correct."

Xu Xin looked solemn.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Jingqi fell silent.

Keep in mind, this is the WTT Grand Finals!
One of the nine major tournaments in the Super Grand Slam!

This is no ordinary commercial competition.

Moreover, his opponent was no ordinary person, but Wang Chuqin, who was ranked number one in the world.

Despite the constant controversies surrounding Wang Chuqin, his rise to the world number one ranking is no small feat.
Looking at the world of table tennis, who would dare to be careless or complacent when facing Wang Chuqin?
For a table tennis player, a good racket is like a weapon for a soldier to charge into battle.

Sometimes, in a competition, a small mistake can lead to a huge difference.

Moreover, the racket blade Chen Jin used was a flawed test racket.

No matter how strong Chen Jin's skills are, using this racket will definitely reduce his effectiveness.

Soon, the news spread like wildfire from Xuperman's live stream.

#Chen Jin tries hitting the racket#, which quickly rose to the top of Weibo's trending topics list.

The trending topics section is buzzing with discussion.

A large number of onlookers flocked to Xuperman's live stream.

Seeing the surge in viewership in the live stream, the operators of the live stream almost grinned from ear to ear.

Unexpectedly, Chen Jin has generated such a huge amount of buzz.

At this moment, Cheng Jingqi was still immersed in the shock of testing the racket, unable to extricate himself.

"How did that happen?"

Cheng Jingqi asked in confusion, "What exactly happened that made Chen Jin use a test racket?"

Undoubtedly, Chen Jin would never have used a flawed test racket in such an important match unless he was forced to.

It makes you want to indulge in conspiracy theories.

"My guess is that there might be something wrong with Chen Jin's racket, such as it being broken by someone stepping on it."

Xu Xin pondered for a moment.

"An Olympic replica, right?"

Cheng Jingqi smiled wryly, "That's not right. Even if the racket gets broken, shouldn't there be a spare racket?"

Before retiring, he was also a player on a team.

I always prepare two rackets when I go out to play in competitions, just in case.

Not to mention that a key player like Chen Jin must also have a spare racket.

"It's estimated that the backup gun failed the test."

It has to be said that Xu Xin was incredibly insightful; he guessed almost exactly what was going on.

Is it really such a coincidence?

Cheng Jingqi said in a low voice.

Not only him, but also the comments section was already filled with doubts.

"His racket was broken by someone, the spare racket failed inspection, so he can only use the test racket... Damn, Chen Jin is really having a tough time."

"There's no such thing as a coincidence in the world. Someone must be deliberately messing with Chen Jin."

"Who is deliberately sabotaging us behind our backs?"

"Is it hard to guess? Of course it's... that so-and-so."

"Whoever benefits the most from this matter is the mastermind behind it."

"Damn it, that's despicable! They'll stop at nothing to beat Chen Jin."

"I, Zhao Shanhe, wholeheartedly support Chen Jin! Go Chen Jin! Go penhold grip!"

"What if Chen Jin wins the match even with a test racket? Wouldn't someone become a laughing stock?"

"Chen Jin, charge!"

……

(End of this chapter)