(by Steve Hopkins)
Each generation has its own great players, but few have reached the the level of table tennis legends Timo Boll and Ma Long. Both players have stepped away from the international stage, though it is not clear yet if we will continue to see them in lower-level team competition for their league squads (Boll plays in the German TTBL and Ma Long plays in the Chinese Super League).
Timo Boll’s career covered over two decades, staying at an elite level throughout. That longevity sets him apart from most other athletes (including Ma Long). He played 6 Olympics, an amazing feat for any sport. He was also World No. 1 three times, with the first time occurring in 2003, then again in 2011, and then to prove his elite longevity – yet again in 2018. Boll twice won the World Cup in Singles (2002 and 2005). His dominance in European play is dramatic – winning 8 Euro singles titles, and winning the German singles title 14 times. He has also helped his club team, Borussia Dusseldorf to be the most successful German League and Champions League team over his period as the team’s anchor.
A strong argument can be made that Ma Long is the best player of all time. At one point, he held the World No. 1 ranking for 34 consecutive months, and overall – he was No. 1 for 64 months (more than any other modern player). He won 6 Olympic Gold Medals, including two singles titles. He won three World Singles titles, he won the World Cup three times, he won 28 ITTF Singles titles, and two different points in his career he was so dominant that he won the Olympics, the World Championships, and the World Cup title all in the same year.
These two icons faced each other 22 times with Ma Long winning 17. Boll is one of the best European players ever, and he has had a strong impact on the game overall – popular throughout the world and playing a style that many strive to imitate. Ma Long did have the benefit of the Chinese machine, with strong players surrounding him, and often having the advantage of favorable seedings in events. But throughout all of this time, with so many great players coming and going on the Chinese team, it was Ma Long that continued to dominate – and Ma Long that continued to win on the biggest stages.
Table tennis is losing two icons this year. And, at a time where Fan Zhendong has stepped away from the game, and Achanta Sharath Kamal has also announced his retirement, many of the most recognizable players will not be present. As these great players step away, there is new room and opportunity for new faces to enter the fray and step up to become the next generation of great players.
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