Zhang Jike Photo: Courtesy of SECA

Injury-plagued Chinese table tennis star Zhang Jike overcame 2019 national champion Hou Yingchao 35-27 in an entertaining match over the weekend, as the COVID-19 pandemic forces worldwide official competitions to a halt. 

Zhang, 32, a three-time Olympic gold medalist and seven-­time world champion, has been sidelined due to injuries for about two years. 

Unlike the traditional best-of-seven-game competition format, the match was played in limited time and separated into three 10-minute sections, with the player who reaches 35 points first becoming the winner. Zhang led 14-11, 23-19 before winning the match.

"I haven't played a competitive game for a long time. I am very satisfied with my performance," Zhang said after the game. "This experimental format is quite nice, very friendly to older athletes. It could also promote the sport."

Defeated veteran Hou, who is the winner of last year's national championship at the age of 39, said that Zhang's capabilities should never be underestimated.

"One should not underestimate Zhang, even though he hasn't played at a high level for over a year," Hou said.

Broadcast on pay-per-view through sports livestreaming platform zhibo.tv, the match, played with no fans in attendance at the venue in Beijing, received more than 15,000 viewers. 

In this competition, Zhang's towel break and water break were decided by online viewers' votes during the live broadcast. Thanks to Zhang's strong fanbase in China, this was not a problem for him. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced global sports events to be suspended or canceled, including the World Table Tennis Championships, which was scheduled to be played in South Korea in March and is now postponed to September.