Wang Manyu (Photo WTT)
Wang Manyu has successfully defended her China Smash table tennis championships crown, putting in a ruthless display to dispatch Hitomi Sato in straight games 11-2, 11-8, 11-3, 11-8.
Sora Matsushima was crowned the men’s singles champion after seeing off Lin Yun-Ju 4-3 in a box office title showdown at Shougang Park, winning 11-7, 11-9, 7-11, 8-11, 5-11, 11-7, 11-9.
The women’s final was over in just 44 minutes, despite the expedite rule coming into effect in the backend of game two, as Manyu cruised past a player who was a thorn in the side of so many this week in Beijing, as one of China’s very best sealed her fourth WTT Grand Smash title with one of the most epic championship points the WTT Series has ever seen.
Heading into the match, Manyu and Sato had met only once on the WTT Series, with the Japanese chopper pulling off a 3-0 upset just three months ago at United States Smash.
However, in their international head-to-head record, Manyu has dominated this rivalry, winning six of six between 2014 and 2020, and she began her hunt for her 10th WTT Series title with that same level of dominance, stunning World No.13 Sato 11-2.
In the semifinal against Chen Xingtong, Sato made history by becoming the first Japanese player to reach a WTT Grand Smash women’s singles, and she also lost the opening game of that match 11-2 before coming back to win 4-1. She was going to have to do it again to win her first WTT Grand Smash title, but this time against a player who as recently as last week was World No.1.
In game two, the WTT Contender Panagyurishte champion Sato looked better, and she was drawing the World No.2 into longer rallies, a tactic she employed against Xingtong that triggered the expedite rule. On the other side of the table, Manyu responded with aggression, forcing Sato back with powerful forehands.
The two styles were making for a gripping final, with a 56-shot rally putting Sato level at 5-5 in game two but then, just like Saturday’s semifinal, the expedite rule was enforced at 9-8. Manyu took the last two points, but the real test was about to come, with the match’s first full game under the new format about to start.
Put simply, Manyu passed that test with flying colours.
With her full attacking flair on show, Manyu cruised through game three, with one point cueing a standing ovation in Infinity ∞ Arena as she dived from side to side, returning impossible shots to survive the 13-shot rally rule.
This match was full of phenomenal rallies, where Wang was smashing forehand shots at Sato, and the Japanese star was returning from impossible angles, as far back as her coach’s bench and sometimes with her back to the table.
It was only fitting then that one of those would give Wang the championship.
Leading 10-9, Manyu, who is also a back-to-back WTT Finals champion, was serving for the title, and she immediately went on the attack, with her third shot in the rally being a forehand rocket from the side of the table.
There were then another eight more of those shots, with Manyu unleashing hell and hitting with such ferocity that the ball could have burst. Sato was equal to almost every single one of them, with her last return landing just centimetres from the edge of the table, confirming Manyu’s second China Smash title.
Sora soars to the title
Sunday evening’s grand finale, the story was all about Matsushima. The 19-year-old superstar, who rose to World No.1 for the first time just days ago, was about to show the world exactly how he earned that title.
It didn’t take long for the final to spark into life with Matsushima racing out of the gate, earning a quick lead as Yun-Ju sent the Japanese star’s first two serves off the table. The one-way traffic continued from there as the World No.1 extended his lead to 4-0, but Lin quickly rebounded, firing off four consecutive points of his own to tie things up at 4-4.
From there, the margins remained razor thin as the two lefties swung for the fences. The first game points of the match would sit in Matsushima’s favour at 10-7, and he only needed one, as Yun-Ju’s fourth ball return clipped the top of the net and off the table.
The short, high-octane rallies would continue to dominate the flow of play, with both players looking to freeze out the other quickly. Fast and furious with little room to breathe, game two flew by at a rate of knots. At 8-9, Yun-Ju produced the most unlikely of shots, appearing to slip as he made contact with the third ball attack, somehow still managing to land a killer shot to leave his opponent bewildered.
But Matsushima was in no mood to admire Yun-Ju’s magic, delivering a brutal response with a crushing forehand down the line to set up 10-9. He then launched into wild celebration after another rocket forehand sealed the game, putting Matsushima firmly in the driving seat.
Curiously, despite falling 5-2 adrift in the third, and seemingly running out of time, Yun-Ju opted against using his time out, leaving it in his back pocket for later. To his credit, he reversed the tide without it, claiming four points on the bounce to recover a 5-6 lead, and this time he capitalised, keeping his composure to finally put his name on the scoreboard.
A huge confidence boost was evident in game four, which Yun-Ju controlled beautifully from start to finish. And just like that, in the blink of an eye, a daunting two-game deficit was erased, with the Men’s Singles final locked at 2-2.
Rueing his luck, Matsushima’s early excitement turned to frustration, the 19-year-old letting out a loud cry of disappointment in the opening exchanges of game five. In contrast, on the opposite end of the table, Yun-Ju had now entered flow state. Quietly going about his business, the ‘Silent Assassin’ punished his opponent with calculated precision, and by the close of the fifth, it was the Chinese Taipei player who was in the ascendency.
Against all the odds, fighting back from 2-0 down, Yun-Ju now sat just one game away from his first WTT Grand Smash singles title. The trophy he had worked so hard to attain over many years was now within touching distance, and it came even closer into view, with three of the opening four points going Yun-Ju’s way in game six. But Matsushima wasn’t going down without a fight, and the Japanese ace would hand himself a late lifeline, pulling together enough energy to force a deciding seventh game.
Pumped up after a huge turnaround, Matsushima was feeling it early in the decider, roaring at the top of his voice as three quick points prompted a time out from his rival. That advantage grew to 6-0, as the break in play appeared to have little impact on denting the momentum.
However, Yun-Ju refused to go away, earning three points in a row to force the second time out of the game, this time from Matsushima. The tension grew further with two more points falling to Yun-Ju, reducing the deficit to one, as the pressure began to pile on Matsushima.
Going right down to the wire, the match entered the final straight. Setting up championship points at 10-8, Matsushima was inches away from the finish line, but his agonising wait would go on a little longer, as Yun-Ju narrowed it to 10-9.
A yellow card for an alleged delay of game offence, only added to Matsushima’s tension. But a dynamite cross-table counter would settle it for the Japanese star, who erupted into celebration, falling to his knees before raising his fist to coach Masataka Morizono.
Rising to World No.1 just a handful of days ago, Matsushima had just clinched his first victory over Lin Yun-Ju on the WTT stage, doing so in epic fashion. On top of all that, Matsushima could now call himself a two-time WTT Grand Smash champion, adding to his record-breaking title success at United States Smash 2026.
As for Yun-Ju, the wait for that elusive WTT Grand Smash title goes on. For the second time in 2026, the Chinese Taipei star is forced to settle for the runner-up position at this level, matching his effort from Singapore Smash 2026.
