Photo: VCG

The table tennis competition at the Chengdu Universiade reached its first climax on Tuesday with the men's and women's team finals played. China's women's and men's teams took on Japan and Chinese Taipei in the final matches, respectively, and fought tenaciously in the face of challenges to collect the first two gold medals of the event.

In the women's team event, faced with a tough challenge from Japan after a thrilling battle that lasted five intense rounds, Team China made an impressive comeback from a set down to defeat their competitor 3:2. This hard-fought victory earned them the first table tennis gold medal of the event.

At the post-match press conference, when asked by the Global Times, Chinese team member He Zhuojia described the victory as "not easily achieved." She attributed the win to the collective strength of the team.

For this Universiade, the Japanese team sent the best of their young players to compete. Kyoka Idesawa and Kimura Kasumi have participated in Japan's 2020 Tokyo Olympics tryouts, and Kimura has also played in the Japan League. Prior to that, in the semifinals, Japan swept Team Hong Kong, which had two athletes in its lineup who had competed in the Tokyo Olympics, with a score of 3:0.

Zang Yuying, coach of the women's team, said the three athletes of the women's team performed very well today. "He Zhuojia's hustle, Qian Tianyi's steadiness, and Wang Xiaotong's power play mobilized the whole field," Zang said.

In the men's team final match, Team China and Chinese Taipei showed exceptional athleticism, igniting the spectator with thunderous cheers. After some intense competition in each set, China emerged victorious with a resounding 3:0 victory. 

After the game, Chinese team player Xue Fei said that he felt both he and Li Xinyang from the Chinese Taipei team played very well. In the second set, some intense competition lead to 16:18, which was a good test for both of them and also brought an exciting match for everyone. Li said that this game provided him with a great learning opportunity.

The teams of China and Chinese Taipei both faced tough challenges on their way to the finals. In the semifinals, Team China encountered some strong resistance from Japan, but managed to withstand the pressure and advanced to the finals with a 3:1 victory. Meanwhile, Chinese Taipei played a thrilling semifinal match against Germany, where they staged an impressive comeback from 0:1 and 1:2 to win 3:2.

Chinese Taipei team player Yang Ziyi told the Global Times that hosting the World University Games in Chengdu allowed them to feel the enthusiasm of the audience in such a large venue. "We thank them for cheering us on," he said.

The Chengdu FISU Games features a total of seven table tennis events, with Team China sending several top-ranked athletes.

He mentioned that this is her first time participating in such a comprehensive sporting event, which differs from the previous table tennis events organized by the World Table Tennis (WTT) association. "The schedule is different, and the events we participate in are not the same, so the pressure we feel is also different," she said.

Zang pointed out that in the upcoming individual events, Team China athletes will continue to maintain their momentum and make their best efforts.