FULL MATCH | Felix Lebrun vs Wen Ruibo | MS Final | #WTTChongqing 2026

Love all. Love one. We've got legends left, right and centre in here. World champions, Olympic champions, legends that have been, come and conquered. Wow. Two, love. What do you think, tactically, we're likely to see from both of these players? Start with Felix. He's got an incredible serve-receive game. He makes it a tight, suffocating battle near the net. Backhand orientated player. Early timing, close to the table. And that penhold backhand coming out already. Four points in and they've all gone the way of the Frenchman. And so for one-way ball, what do you think he's going to be really trying to focus on? Get that forehand in. He doesn't want to play too many backhand-to-backhands with Felix. He's got a Frenchman option to play. Maybe try and get the Frenchman into the crossover and take a step off and slink to high heaven. Yeah, that forehand is monstrous. Chop block from LeBron. Silky smooth and buttery on that backhand. Felix actually started quite slow against Sora Matsushima earlier on in the semi-final. And he's righted that wrong here. Five of the first six have gone his way. He's come back from three-one down twice here in Chongqing. You want to silence a crowd. This is how you do it. What a start from Felix. I saw him strolling up and down the corridor behind the curtain, Joe. He was meditative, LeBron. With his eyes closed, he's trying to manifest something special here against the man who's playing like there's nothing to lose. The first big forehand of the game for one-way ball. That forehand, I've seen comparisons to the great Wang Liqin and Ma Long as well. Yeah. Incredible, I mean, Wenrui Bo for me really came onto the radar at the Europe Smash last year. He should have probably taken Calderano to a decider. But since then he's gone on to beat the World Cup champion and so many others. And he's here now as a wild card in this final. It's another edge. And just like that, six-one. The last four go the way of Team China's youngster. It's a one-point ball game again. Obviously, this is a first-time senior meeting, so it might take a little bit of getting used to for both of these players. Five, seven. They're trying to learn each other's patterns under the biggest pressure, under the brightest lights. And that was what impressed me so much about Wenrui Bo's victory over Tomo, the finals champion. Someone who's been one of the longest-term concerns for Team China for nearly ten years. And you mentioned that serve receive. Felix using it there, just hacking under the ball. Yeah, that touch and push play, so divisive with that. A fluidity that comes with the penhold grip. Flexibility, the balance. What is it about that penhold grip that helps him there? He can fight gravity a little bit easier, and I think it's a more sensory grip. You get a better sense of the vibrations because of the three fingers placed on the backhand side. Left, nine-five. You can see because he actually cuffs the fingers in. More backhand-orientated penhold style. If you see legends like Ma Lin and Xu Xin, the fingers on that backhand side are straighter because it favours the forehand. You just hold your breath once these two start swinging. It's like a pinball machine. But Felix Lebrun has five game points in the opener. And it's that cuffing short play that you mentioned, Fraser, that's got it done. Felix Lebrun is not Ma Lin, but he's got a new coach in the corner for this one, right? Yeah, I mean, this event has been a breath of fresh air. There's something different in so many ways. But yeah, Nat Molany's coach since he was a toddler, basically, isn't here. The Lebruns aren't quite in each other's pockets as much with the coach as what we've seen before. Of course, they did take the Singapore Smash title in men's doubles together. Now Jean-René Mounier, the former personal coach of Colorado, is with him. And Liu Hong in the dugout for one-ray ball. Oh, it's an edge. We've seen a lot of edges so far, haven't we? Apology from one-ray ball. Puts everything through it. It's the way he rotates and activates and contorts and recovers and balances. It's just all there. Beautiful silhouette. Felix proving again why he's a producer's nightmare. Because whilst you're in a replay, he's already served and fired it out. Yeah, shout-out to our production team, who've done a fantastic job all week to keep up with this guy, especially. One-ray ball just about going toe-to-toe, but quickly caught on the back foot, wasn't he? Lebrun playing the parallels, trying to take that forehand off the bounce down the line. Playing the Xs and the Hs on the table. And after six points and a tail break, it's one-ray ball who has a slender two-point advantage in game number two. And he went for the fast serve. And Felix got the feet moving. He's mentioned that forehand. Recently says he's been working on it so much. The speed to get it into the game and also the power that he can deliver on it. The accuracy of this backhand. Because it's staggering. It's just so functional. And the reason why it's so good is because there's no wasted movement before he makes contact with the ball, while he's making contact with the ball. Saw a beautiful crossover to crossover exchange there. Goodness. The acceleration and the recovery is just staggering. Felix was actually going blow for blow against the World Cup champion, Hugo Calderano. How many can do that? How many can last so long with the third from Brazil in that department? In the open play. Does managing emotions and managing the moment come into your thinking here? Felix Lebrun already a champions winner. Yeah. This is his first attempt. It's a good question. Beautiful push counter combo from Lebrun. Keep his lead. But yeah, I think it's definitely a factor the experience of Felix Lebrun. Probably not used to being the older player in finals. But look how young all of the semi-finalists were here. Look at how young the top ten is overall. And it's Felix Lebrun who is tiptoeing towards the end of game two here. I think many players could be faced by an occasion like this as we see the entourage of Chinese coaches, legends and youth players. But I think that Wenrui Bo is actually going to take a little bit of pressure off himself. He's come this far. Why panic? He's dragging it back in. It was a three-point advantage to Felix. Just reduced to the one. He's to love a long fast serve as well. Love to get on the aggression early. One point away from a two to zero lead in games for Felix Lebrun. Shows you how tight to the net he's trying to keep it. Doesn't want anything loose that Wenrui Bo can get on. There's a lot of perspiration on that table. Just see it where Felix Lebrun is serving. But what a clutch counter here from Wenrui Bo. Drops that right leg, doesn't he? Watch the right leg. He drops the level to create the power. Bang! And it was a clever bit of play from Lebrun. Trying to trap him. Get him into flick backhand from the forehand side. Then play right out to deep forehand. But he managed to control his body. Listen, Felix still has two game points. And he gets it done. Game to Lebrun. What do you think the team talk would have been in the corner of Wenrui Bo? What do you think he needs to do to try and get a foothold in this final? I think he's got to prevent situations where he's getting drawn into too many backhand to backhand trades. Close to the table with Felix. I think he has to vary play. Be aggressive where he can be. Try and force that forehand. Maybe try and stretch Felix out wide as well. Where he can. We know Felix loves the rapid tempo. And I think Wenrui Bo has to try to create juxtapositions where he can. We've seen constantly in this modern era of table tennis the push counter tactic. Sometimes preferred over trying to flick out straight away and giving your opponent the first drive opportunity. I'm sure we'll see more of that here. Felix is tuning up the band. Getting the vocal cords going. I mean, whatever happens here, Wenrui Bo has made history because he's the first ever wild card to make it to a men's singles final. Has happened before in the women's game. Chen Xin Tong, a Champions Macau 2022. But on that occasion she made it to the final and she wasn't able to convert it. So Wenrui Bo will be hoping for a different outcome. And this isn't necessarily unfamiliar territory for the youngster. He made a real kind of WTT series breakthrough. Earlier this season he laid claim to the men's singles title at Contender Muscat. That's his first international singles title. Oh, it flicked the edge. You heard it. Shout out to the production team. They've got mics everywhere in this infinity arena, haven't they? It's a good point you made about him taking his first title in Muscat. That was an almighty clash against the Dragon Slayer, Patrick Francisco. And he nearly won a star contender this season as well. In Doha before that, it was Zhou Jihao who defeated him in the final. Here in Chongqing before zero. Felix Lebrun will be looking to get the first. But it might be a spoiler towards what might end up being an epic tussle here. How on earth did Felix get that out of his pocket? To Houdini like escape. Not like he was going to go right into his shirt or pass it when he tried to play it out. But Wenrui Bo just keeping his eye on the ball. The power he can generate. It's like a video game when you spend all your points on power. What is that? Is that slightly taller? He's got slightly longer limbs. Does that help? I think that actually makes it harder to accelerate and recover having longer limbs. But it is just the acceleration. Counter strike from the back of the court with this backhand. Now that could be a massively confidence boosting point there for Wenrui Bo. On the back foot. Showing he's got that in his locker. But it's the slower spin again from Felix. It's this contact. You know when he plays the RPB there's a little bit more side spin on it than what a lot of players impart. On the forehand he comes up the ball a bit more. It's like it's driven as the backhand. But Wenrui Bo is not going away. He showed against Tomokazu Harimoto. That he can withstand pressure. Great serve from Leblanc. Eitel. Wenrui Bo has two serves to come. Perfectly balanced this third game. But who's going to blink first? The serve receive again. You mentioned it. The first thing you said about Felix is he has this wicked forehand receive. That's how he digs into it. Wenrui Bo had quite a bit of time on his hands. But he made the compound movement. Maybe that is a little bit of over-excitedness. Just bubbling and boiling over. We've got a little break in play. There's something on the table. Wenrui Bo is spotted. You've got to make those if you're Wenrui Bo. This is such an important game. It could be make it or break it. Do or die for him in this final. Counter is there again. This time to the body. Felix positioned it so well. But look at that from Wenrui Bo. Surgical. Clinical. That's a bit of luck that he needs right now. Has a game point from nowhere. I think at this level he's playing top five table tennis. But so is Felix Lebrun. And that's why this is such a fun match-up. I think when you look at Wang Chuqin, he deserves to be the number one right now. Having won the last three smashes that he's played. I think there's an argument to be made that Shidong, struggling like he is, might drop out of there. Felix Lebrun, even tipped by Ma Long himself back in 2022 as a potential future world champion. This new Olympic cycle, Joe, there's a few players in the conversation. Listen, we shared the QR code for London World Championships. The teams. Does this man make a late dash for the team? No, Felix will be there. Team France finalists. And they've got a better team now than what they even had back in Busan. I think Wenrui Bo deserves a chance. He deserves to be there. To a ball. What a start from Felix Lebrun. Ma Long has to try now to win this other point on receive. He absorbed a couple of nets there to stay in the rally. Left. 4-1. 1-5. That kicking skidder of a long fast serve. It's fair to say, so far in 2026, this is probably the highlight of both these players. Performances. And Felix Bo. As he gets forced back with a fast serve and combo. Felix played in the first champions event in Doha. Exited to Harimoto in the quarters. And then both of these players were in Singapore for the smash. The first smash of the season. Wenrui Bo actually exited in the round of 64. 3-0 to Zhang Wujin. Stunning exchange. Lebrun. On the run into the lead again. Extending it here. Nah. I think Wenrui Bo didn't play his best in Singapore. I mean Zhang Wujin made the final in Doha at the champions this season. The beat Lin Shidong. He's beaten many Chinese players here. Wenrui Bo has played much better. Man, look at this for a game from Lebrun. What a statement to come back. 8-2 up. I see no way back here for Wenrui Bo. That's a big statement. Any other week I would say yes. But something is in the water here in Chongqing. Down the line against Tomokazu. To save that game point. That crucial moment was unbelievable. How he uses pace when he doesn't have time to produce power of his own. That was the exact same way Wenrui Bo put away Charles Morgard. A backhand up the line. Becoming a bit of a staple for him. Felix Lebrun still has a slender lead. Gobsmacked. It looks so easy. He covers the net. And another. Fortunate there for Felix Lebrun. And that's respite. He did so well to stay focused. Again, bearing in mind how the last point ended. And he's two away now from establishing a 3-1 games lead here. In the final. Nice serve. Oh, and it's an edge. He deserved it after the last point. The two nets that Lebrun got. He's managed to make this way closer than what it looked like it was going to be. Credit to the 19-year-old. Three game points. Can he get it done though, Felix Lebrun? He can. He gets it done on serve. In this star-studded Champions Chongqing where all the Chinese A-listers have played. We've never seen anything like this before in WTT history. Felix is looking so sharp right now. He's making all the right decisions. There's a flash in the crowd. He's got to find a way to shut down the heavy push of Felix Lebrun. And I think topspin serving or float serving could be the way. I can see you're about to ask me. Great minds think alike. Because I saw Wanrui Bo go to the shovel serve, which you can put top on. There is also another way. One serve, the living heck out of everything. Maybe that's the way. Force Lebrun into the storm and just try and power him down that forehand side. Good luck with that. But you're right. Wanrui Bo has got to do something out of the ordinary here. 3-1 down in games and 3-1 down in points here. High toss serve. By switching Felix Lebrun down the line, Wanrui Bo can then take control with the backhand from middle because he's cut off potential angles for Lebrun. And then Wanrui Bo can save time. He's tried it again with the flick, but that's a bit ambitious. But it's that serve receive again from Felix, isn't it? He just kills the ball dead. Look at this. The daintiest of dinks. It's just so neat, so tidy. It was Xu Xin who famously said about short forehand receive being Felix's weakness. And it's like that Michael Jordan meme where he goes, I took that personally. And that's what this kid has been working on. And it's so good now. And he's improved the forehand timing as well so that he makes use of his power more. Last year he put on over 10 kilograms in a year. He's filling that frame. He's a force to be reckoned with, Lebrun. The crowd are trying to rally a response from Wanrui Bo. What a response it was. That backhand counter is something beautiful, isn't it? And it's a one point ball game again. This is just delightful. The big jump from Team China's young star. And Felix with the celebration because he's got a two point lead here. These two are very well balanced when it goes long fast. Watch for the backhand. Oh, one came. A second couldn't. Wanrui Bo did so well to get these balls out. This crossover, that one there in particular. But Felix Lebrun just pinning it in the corner. He's so solid, Reba. I mean, playing in France alongside Simon Cozzi might have helped him develop a little bit of flair. Oh, yeah. So there is a little bit more to this story than what the international head-to-head may suggest. There's the switch. But you're right. That backhand up the line for Wanrui Bo. If he can hit it with enough power, he can land some damage here. He can land some serious damage. And well, he came back from a bigger deficit in the last game. Maybe he's still alive for him. And what a block! The thumbs up from Felix. That's daylight robbery, Joe. Look at the shades of Tomokazu Harimoto out here. But importantly, we are tied at 7-0. Great receive. There's nervous feet. Sat in front of me. Team China on the bench. Because Felix Lebrun is three points away. And it's the softer things, isn't it? That sizzling spin from Felix Lebrun. Two is the lead. Two is the need. It's now or never for Wanrui Bo. As you see, the percentage of points won on serve. Felix holding a healthy advantage. 10-8. That sets up two championship points. Felix Lebrun sniffed out the half long. No regard for his arm. He was willing to just crunch it even though the table was in the way. Two championship points. One championship point. Table. It was. Imagine if he skirted it and rolled it around the net to seal the deal. It's 10-10. How is everyone's heart rate? 11 apiece. Don't know where that doctor is but they better bring the defib. Wanrui Bo has started to land damage with that backhand up the line. Will he go to it again? And it's an edge ball that gives Felix Lebrun another championship point. Left. 12-11. Left. 12-11. It's Lebrun. Champion in Chongqing. What a masterful performance.