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

Chapter 506 Welcome to the era when the Golden Armor Duo dominates the men's doubles arena!

Time seemed to stand still at this moment.

next second.

"Choo-hoo!"

Zhang Jiahao's roar was the first to break the silence.

Like a thunderclap, it exploded in the stadium.

Turn around and face the stands.

He gripped the racket tightly in his left hand and pounded it heavily against his chest.

The index finger of his right hand is stretched out straight, pointing proudly diagonally towards the dome of the stadium.

“Wow——!!!”

The entire Orleans stadium erupted in a deafening roar.

The tension, anticipation, and passion that had been building up throughout the entire match were completely ignited in that instant.

Cheers, shouts, applause, screams... resounded throughout the stadium, deafeningly loud.

Zhang Jiahao suddenly turned around again, opened his arms, and pounced on Chen Jin.

The two did not speak, but embraced tightly.

On the other side of the table.

Ahn Jae-hyun stared blankly down at the racket in his hand, his eyes vacant.

Lin Zhongxun was panting heavily, his hands on his hips, looking up at the glaring lights on the stadium ceiling. His chest heaved violently, and his face showed a hint of resentment and helplessness.

In the end, it all turned into a sigh.

She walked up to Ahn Jae-hyun, silently put her arm around his shoulder, and squeezed it hard.

Neither of them spoke, but instead gave each other a silent high five.

Then, he walked over to Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao.

After shaking hands.

Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao, each carrying their own racket and towel, walked side by side toward the rest area on the sidelines.

"The first and third games were too close."

Zhang Jiahao let out a long breath, still shaken. "Ahn Jae-hyun and Lim Chung-hoon were like they were on steroids today, their energy was overwhelming."

"Ah."

Chen Jin nodded and glanced at Zhang Jiahao. "Everything else is fine. What I didn't expect was that your last high smash was actually countered by Lin Zhongxun's backhand."

"Maybe it's because I'm not strong enough; I couldn't kill him with one blow."

Zhang Jiahao scratched his head sheepishly, "If it were you, Brother Jin, that ball would probably have blown the floor right through."

"It's not that exaggerated."

Chen Jin said, "You need to systematically train your strength."

"Otherwise, in future matches, when facing top players, this situation of not being able to kill the ball at crucial moments may still occur."

"Double can make up for it, but singles is a big problem."

With a World Table Tennis Championships men's doubles title and two Grand Slam men's doubles titles, Zhang Jiahao's doubles achievements are now widely recognized.

However, pressure also follows.

If their singles results don't improve quickly, they will inevitably face criticism.

This will be extremely detrimental to Zhang Jiahao's future mental development.

In fact, Zhang Jiahao was well aware of this.
"understand!"

Zhang Jiahao stood up straight.

Back on the sidelines, Wang Hao was all smiles, and naturally, he couldn't help but shower Wang Hao with praise.

Take a short break.

Staff members came forward and guided Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao back to the field for an interview.

Under the spotlight, the two once again became the focus of the entire event.

First of all, congratulations to Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao!

The host, all smiles, handed over the microphone, saying, "This is your second time teaming up after the Singapore Grand Slam and the Doha World Championships, and you've won another very prestigious men's doubles title."

"It's fair to say that your pair has become one of the most eye-catching teams in the world of men's doubles. How would you rate yourselves as a pair?"

Chen Jin glanced at Zhang Jiahao beside him.

The host understood and handed the microphone to Zhang Jiahao.

Zhang Jiahao stood with his hands on his hips, pondered for a moment, and then said to the camera in a firm voice: "If 2011 to 2020 was the decade in which Ma Long and Xu Xin dominated the men's doubles, then starting from 2025, the world's number one men's doubles team for the next decade will be Jin Ge and me."

At this point, Zhang Jiahao paused, looked around, and then spoke again.

"Welcome to the era when the Golden Armor Duo dominates the men's doubles!"

Zhang Jiahao raised his voice slightly, as if declaring to the world, "We are the King of the world!"

His bold words were full of youthful vigor.

This caused the fans at the scene to erupt in cheers.

Online, it also sparked a wave of heated discussions.

"Brother Hao is awesome! He exudes an aura of dominance!"

"Within a year, I have won two Grand Slam titles and a World Championship title. With such achievements, I have the confidence to speak!"

"Table tennis players all over the world, tremble! From this moment on, welcome to the era of the Golden Armor Duo dominating the men's doubles arena!"

“We are…? Brother Hao, we can’t be like Chef Ma.”

"Young and spirited, he should be proud and not back down! Now that he's won, he should be arrogant. Does he have to pretend to be humble and say, 'We're not good enough, we were just lucky'?"

"I love Zhang Jiahao's shameless confidence!"

……

However, there was no shortage of skepticism and ridicule.

"The world's number one men's doubles player for the next ten years? That's hilarious! Our Big Head is the number one men's doubles player in table tennis, a double Grand Slam winner! You guys have only won a few championships, you're nothing!"

"Having relied on Chen Jin's powerful connections, they've only won a few doubles championships, and they've become incredibly arrogant, forgetting even their own name?"

"Without Chen Jin, what is Zhang Jiahao? His singles results are terrible. He's incompetent in international matches and just so-so in domestic matches."

"To be honest, even if Chen Jin had a dog by his side, he could still win the doubles championship. I could do it too!"

"Double champion? That's just self-aggrandizement. Every time, it's Chen Jin who turns the tide. Zhang Jiahao is just a burden, making things more difficult for Chen Jin."

……

lounge.

Zhang Jiahao sat on a bench, scrolling through his phone. Various comments inevitably caught his eye.

"Brother Jin."

Zhang Jiahao said with a hint of excitement, "Our men's doubles team won the championship and is now trending at number one on social media again."

The last time I received such treatment was at the Doha World Table Tennis Championships.

But this time, he clearly has a lot more fans supporting him.

"Take a screenshot quickly."

With a click, Zhang Jiahao operated his phone, "When I go back for the New Year, I must show off to all my aunts and uncles."

"I, Zhang Jiahao, am a celebrity now, at least a little!"

As for those jarring comments...

"As expected, Kuroko is the one who understands me the most."

Zhang Jiahao chuckled, "They said I was clinging to Brother Jin's coattails, and they're not wrong."

Without saying a word, he picked up his phone, aimed it at the championship trophy in his hand, and snapped a series of photos.

Then, he casually put his arm around Chen Jin's shoulder.

"what?"

Chen Jin shook his hands.

"Come on, smile."

Zhang Jiahao posted a selfie with a wide grin.

Followed by.

Fingers flew across the keyboard as the post was edited for WeChat Moments.

Less than a minute.

Several freshly taken photos appeared in Zhang Jiahao's WeChat Moments.

His poise on the field, the championship trophy... and a selfie of him and Chen Jin with their arms around each other's shoulders.

Caption—

"It feels so damn good to have someone to rely on!"

……

at the same time.

Hotel, a room.

Seiya Kishikawa and Tomokazu Harimoto just finished watching the live broadcast of the men's doubles final.

"Chen Jin has won another championship."

Kishikawa Seiya looked serious and sighed, "In any competition that Chen Jin participates in, whether it's doubles or singles, it seems like the championship has already been reserved by him, and the outcome is decided very early on."

"Is it really scientific that someone's dominance on the field can be this terrifying?"

During his playing career, he faced strong opponents such as Wang Zhizhi, Wang Junkai, Ma Long, and the Rio trio, but in terms of dominance on the field, he still lagged behind Chen Jin.

Tomokazu Harimoto suddenly raised his head.

There was no fear in those young eyes.

Instead, it burned with an even more intense flame.

His eyes were like those of a ferocious beast, a mixture of resentment, a desire to challenge, and a strong competitive spirit.

"The better his grades are, the more I want to beat him!"

Zhang Benzhihe clenched his fist, his eyes flashing with the sharpness of swords. "As long as we defeat Chen Jin, we can shatter the confidence of the entire Chinese team and break their myth of invincibility."

In his view, with Long Pang's retirement, the era of Chinese team's dominance in table tennis is about to come to an end.

People like Wang Chuqin, Liang Jingkun, Lin Shidong, and Xiang Peng, including Xie Mingyang and Zhang Jiahao, are not worth worrying about.

After all, each of them has their own weaknesses.

Chen Jin was the only one who was different.

Despite his young age, he has become the absolute core of the Chinese team.

Once Chen Jin is defeated, the others are no threat.

As the top male table tennis player on the Japanese team and a highly anticipated naturalized player, Tomokazu Harimoto carries unimaginable pressure and expectations.

From a young age, he longed to defeat the Chinese team in order to gain the recognition of the Japanese.

However, at the Doha World Table Tennis Championships, he, who was highly anticipated, returned empty-handed and won no medals.

In contrast, his teammates, Hayato Togami and Hiroto Shinozuka, including Mima Ito and his younger sister Miwa Harimoto, all won medals at the World Championships.

After returning to China, the media publicized it extensively.

He was met with ridicule and sarcasm, with comments like, "He holds the title of Japan's top male table tennis player and enjoys the resources of the top male table tennis player, yet his results are inferior to those of local players," and "Is Zhang Benjun truly loyal to his country? It's a pity he's loyal to his motherland..."

Such a stark contrast was a huge blow to Tomokazu Harimoto.

This US Grand Slam is undoubtedly a golden opportunity for him to prove himself.

The best way to prove yourself is to defeat the then-dominant Chen Jin in the most important men's singles competition!
Chen Jin was eliminated in the men's singles semifinals!
Seeing the fighting spirit burning in Tomokazu Harimoto's eyes, Seiya Kishikawa felt a little comforted.

This time, he did not use his trump card, the AI ​​battle analysis system called "Great God".

Because he had Omikami run the analysis beforehand.

There is no suspense about the outcome.

Given Zhang Benzhihe's current situation, he simply cannot find a way to defeat Chen Jin using only brute force.

The only two variables for winning.

First, Chen Jin withdrew from the competition due to injury.

Secondly, Tomokazu Harimoto unleashed a crazy burst of power.

Kishikawa Seiya feared that those cold, hard data and win rate predictions would undermine Harimoto Tomokazu's confidence.

Therefore, it was abandoned and not used.

"Zhang Benjun, I've always believed in you, and I believe you can definitely defeat Chen Jin!"

Kishikawa Seiya patted Harimoto Tomokazu's shoulder forcefully, "Your strength is beyond doubt!"

"Don't have any worries or concerns. Show the same level of performance you had against Fan Zhendong at the Paris Olympics, burn with all your might, and defeat Chen Jin!"

"Make history tonight in the semifinals!"

Zhang Benzhihe's eyes were sharp as he nodded heavily.

It felt as if a battle was raging within my chest.

His insatiable desire for victory almost burst forth from his body.

(End of this chapter)