Ma Long retained his world singles title in Düsseldorf, outlasting compatriot Fan Zhendong 4-3 in a final that pushed both men past every limit. The seventh game finished 12-10, a margin so fine that across the entire match the champion won only four more points than the runner-up.
A start from behind, a finish on the floor
Fan Zhendong seized the opening game, motivating himself vocally while Ma Long looked a trifle passive. The top seed hit back to win the second, then built a 7-3 lead in the third and did not drop another point. A time-out at 6-4 in the fourth settled his nerves, and after Fan Zhendong levelled at 6-6, Ma Long won three straight points for a 3-1 lead.
The challenger refused to fade. An early 5-1 start carried the fifth game, and in the sixth Fan Zhendong surged ahead 9-3 before his own time-out helped force a deciding seventh. At the change of ends, Ma Long led 5-3, but Fan Zhendong soon moved ahead 9-7, two points from the title.
Two points from defeat, a second crown
Ma Long levelled at 9-9 with his own serve to follow. Tense rallies pushed the score to 12-10, and when the final point landed he collapsed to the floor, his racket spinning into the air. The 8,000 spectators who filled Messeplatz rose as one.
The title was Ma Long's second in a row, following his first world singles crown in Suzhou in 2015. He already held the Olympic singles gold from Rio, and this win on German soil cemented a run that would soon stretch further — an Olympic singles defence in Tokyo, then a record third straight world singles title in 2019.
Afterwards a drained Ma Long told reporters, "I hope this match will be remembered by everyone in the history of table tennis; this is definitely the craziest match I have ever played." He added, "I feel sorry for Fan Zhendong, but the future belongs to him."
Fan Zhendong struck more outright winners, 13 to Ma Long's 8. But a handful of points at the sharpest edge of pressure decided everything.
