FULL MATCH | Ma Long vs Liam Pitchford | MS R64 | #ChinaSmash 2024

It's pitch with the first point on his serve. Liam Pitchford's had some big wins over the years, but none better than Malong. The quick gift, a little thank you serve for having us here in your land, Malong. Oh, the beauty. Hey, watch that right shoulder, Patricia. You gotta keep her safe. The wrist, Liam Pitchford's wrist. Get ready, Brock, but watch this inside out forehand. Oh, the side spin on it makes that bend out of reach. Hits the edge of the racket. Dangerous high risk play. Good wide serve. Now the list of accomplishments that Malong has, his titles, maybe even longer the list of skills that he has, but he's the most adaptable player in the game. People often ask, what is the lifespan of a table tennis player? Depends who you play for. Play for Team China, Malong has tied the record that I know of in the men's game. Oh, look at this, inside the table. He shares that with Wang Liqin. 35 years old, Wang Liqin played his last match for the Chinese team. Malong with a little shoe tie here, at the towel break. Good time to do it. Malong's forehand has been argued to be the best forehand in the world for a long time. A lot of young up-and-comers. Good call, Patricia Liu. He's playing the best conditions possible for the stars. It feels like yesterday in 2019 when Malong came back from surgery. The real question was the wide forehand. That was where he didn't seem to trust himself just yet. Malong has no fear, the only fear is injury. Ooh, nice move, pitch with the wingspan. Anticipates and brings back the big hurricane forehand. Soft touch there. Short stroke back, the counter from pitch. Flying friend. It's always interesting to tell a lot about a person, the way they move their flying friend. Nice soft flick here. A little hesitation from Malong and it pays off. I know what I should do, and I see what you want from me. So I'm going to hold up a minute and give you something different. Leveled out at five points apiece. Malong keeping the ball dry, that is the responsibility of the server. Handcuffing serve to that backhand, a dangler. Right into the crossover section. Jin Zijian there, secretary general for CTTA. Coaching over the years for Team China. Malong's backhand from time to time he'll rip, but typically he's more guiding and controlling with it. Playing it out in front. The chase. Extending his lead to three here. Some momentum here for Malong. More specifically, six of the last eight points. Man, the spin on this shot loads it, digs in, keeps it short. Early part of game one it was quite back and forth, but running ahead and doing what the dictator does. Perfectly into the middle, hits him in the shirt and point is over. It is game point, five times over for Malong in front of the boys. Back for game two, Malong to start it off. Oh, the step around beats him in the race to the backhand corner. Malong still with the speed. The idea is right for me from Liam Pitchford. The momentum, 12 of the last 16. Off the top of the net here. As table tennis fans it's funny, I had an interesting dream the other night that involved Malong. Speaking a lot of English, which he does, you've heard his speeches over the years. But I think I'm not alone, I'm sure table tennis fans over the last decade and a half have probably had their fair dreams, fair share of dreams where Malong and them are hanging out for some reason. Right up against the table. It's a stable table, doesn't move. The rule was made for back in the day, generally most players aren't moving the table. You are allowed to bump the table. You're even allowed to touch the table surface with the hand that holds the racket or the arm. It's just the free hand that is not allowed to touch it. You're even allowed to jump on the table if you need to. One fishing shot from Pitch instead of playing everything on the full attack. Rallies like this in the past, as we saw Pitch pull the right leg, that was the one. And that last shot from the backhand, Pitch says I'm going to invest in a ball for a forehand. I don't need to play too far out of my comfort zone. Let's keep it in play. Test the man. Choleo, I like it. People often wonder, I know table tennis fans know the word chole. What does it mean? The world may never know. A lot of interesting theories about where it comes from. Nothing definitive yet. Inside the table, a bit of chole here taking his chances. Pitch. I mentioned that Liam Pitchford, I'll tell you more about it in a minute. Five out of every six points here for Ma Long on serves, he wins. One out of every two for Liam Pitchford. That's a 18. That accent has nothing to do with this match. Change of pace on the step around here for Ma Long. The timing, you could just feel it was different. Bit more spin, a little shallower on the table. Buys him time to get back to cover. Forces Liam Pitchford to put a little bit more pace on it instead of simply block and guide. Second bounce. A little luck against the dragon. Not to be confused with the luck dragon, Falcor. Will go back and forth, best to five though. So the luck doesn't have as much time to even out. Not vertically. Four, six. Not vertically. Four, six. Whoa, he said you can't see the ball from that side. John Murphy said, reset. Start over, focus. Good combination, one to the middle and out to the forehand. It's funny, Pitch is very free in many ways. A lot of players you've heard when they get a warning, do everything they can to not get into a conversation. Pitch expressed himself like N.W.A. or Madonna. The backhand as well here to boot. The British boy, Liam Pitchford, ties it back up. Man, that wrist. Whiplike. 2018 in London. Showed the world what he was made of against Fan Zhendong. Despite being beaten, that's when Liam Pitchford started to really get some heads turning. Long serve to the backhand here, Ma Long. Again, the significance of Liam Pitchford's win over Ma Long. Ma Long has been beaten by a handful of foreigners over the years, meaning non-Chinese players from Maharu Yoshimura to Tomokazu Harimoto, Lin Wenru, Patrick Bronziska, Yi Sang Su. But Liam Pitchford's one of the most memorable. And this is smart play. As deep to the backhand as can be, it's a race. He says, I know you prefer the forehand to finish. And it seems likely that you're going to go to step around that backhand corner. So I'm going to make it as wide as possible. Soft hands every single point. Ma Long with clear intention. Yeah, Dad. Plenty of opportunities for time on screen, I'm sure, should you want it. Ma Long family. In this one, Liam Pitchford trying to keep it in for one more play. It's crazy to think. Timo Boll recently retired. From international play, Ma Long doubles partner to Timo. Still here. It's an opportunity for us all to enjoy. 970 leads. Three game points now for Ma Long. Quick decision here. Pitch out in front after some big backhands cross court. Second one into that middle. Third, right at that elbow and sprays it out the other way. One game point saved. A closer game here than in the last. Same in Singapore, same in Saudi Arabia. As I was saying earlier, while he hates losing, Liam Pitchford, should he win this match, could end his career, Ma Long's career. Two and two. Ooh. A little bit of fortune there with a faint spinny contact. Occasionally the ball comes off the racket in a way you didn't fully intend. Liam Pitchford, the gentleman. The gentleman. Nice shuffle. Pulls back the right foot to create a little space for the forehand inside the baseline pitch.