Profile | Ma Long: biography, playing style, career earnings and is he the greatest table tennis player of all time?

The 32-year-old tends to keep to himself away from the table, but on it, he is known for his aggressive style of play
Ma Long can become the most decorated Olympic table tennis player of all time at Tokyo 2020

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Patrick Blennerhassett

Published: 8:00am, 30 Jun 2021

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When it comes to table tennis, there is no name more synonymous with the sport right now than Ma Long. The three-time Olympics gold medallist and the reigning singles Olympic champion is set for Tokyo 2020 and a stab at table tennis immortality.

The Chinese player, who is known for having the sport’s most aggressive forehand, will look to add to his trove of titles this summer. But who is the man so synonymous with table tennis?

Biography

The 32-year-old was born on October 20, 1988 and hails from the northeastern Chinese city of Anshan. He became the youngest world champion at 17 years old when he won the 2006 Bremen World Team Championship, the same year he won the Asian and World Junior Championships.

His talent was cultivated under former Chinese national team coach Ma Kai Xuan and he already had a lot of success in the game before turning 22. Despite his fame, Ma is not one for the media spotlight and tends to keep his private life just that. He did let his fans know a bit about himself during an interview in Shenzhen in 2019 when he said:

Can Ma Long add to his impressive table tennis resume at Tokyo 2020. Photo: Xinhua

“I used to play football, and in the last few years I’ve played some basketball.” He also said he used to play golf, and may have taken up the sport full-time if he hadn’t got into table tennis, but he added that he was playing much less golf lately to reduce the risk of injury.

Ma counts football superstar Lionel Messi, NBA point guard Paul George, and tennis players Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal as inspirations for his tireless work ethic and dedication to the sport which he practices for hours on end most days.

Olympic champion Ma and Fan in Chinese table tennis squad

How good is Ma Long?

Before the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) switched to a weekly world ranking system at the beginning of this year, Ma held the record for the longest time spent at the summit of the men’s rankings. He spent 64 months ranked No 1, dating all the way back to January of 2010.

Then from 2015 to 2017 he tabulated 34 straight months at the top of the rankings before an injury saw him knocked off Even though he has not been back to the world No 1 slot since, he defended his singles title successfully at the 2019 World Championships.

For more than 10 years, starting in 2007, he was never outside the top 10 in the world rankings.

Right now, within the table tennis world, Ma is considered the second best player of all-time behind Zhang Jike, who has three gold medals and one silver. However, Ma did beat Zhang in Brazil, which has fuelled debate within table tennis. In Tokyo, Ma has a shot at surpassing Zhang and becoming the most decorated table tennis player of all-time, if he can nab medals in both the singles and team events in Tokyo. He will compete in both events in Tokyo.

What is Ma Long’s playing style?

Ma Long represents the pinnacle of Chinese table tennis. China has dominated the sport for decades. Photo: Xinhua

Ma is a right-handed player and is known for his aggressive style of play. His signature is employing a lot of topspin in his play, according to tabletennisdaily.com. This helps him to put his opponents on a defensive footing right away. He combines this with a ferocious serve. Ma will face some stiff competition at Tokyo 2020 but has the chance to cement his legacy with another impressive showing.

He is also known for deploying the famous “close range third ball play” in his play, which is a strategy where the serving player attacks aggressively after the returning player sends the ball back.

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