The 45th World Championships Through The Eye Of The Video Camera

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The 45th World Championships Through The Eye Of The Video Camera

BY GARY RUDERMAN, Owner-Producer, Reflex Sports

PART 4 of 5

All the lefthanded players are out of the tournament now. Viewers will notice that we position ourselves on the right for right-handers and on the left for left-handers so we do not have to shoot over the backs of the players when they serve or receive service. Now our camera crew can establish one courtside position at each match rather than having to change positions after each game.

In Primorac's match against Karlsson, we would expect to see these two competitors with similar styles provide a close match. Karlsson, however, managed to take only the second game, although he did that at 11. The more experienced Primorac took the other three at 15, 19 and finally a blowout 5 in the fourth game.

Eloi, flush from his victory over Wang, plays Austria's Werner Schlager evenly for most of the first game, but loses at 19. Schlager, playing far better than we have ever seen him, wins the loop to loop battle three straight, taking the last two at 18 and 12. In that last game, Eloi could not help looking at his coach throughout the game, with a "what can I do" expression on his face.

Ma Lin showed himself to be an extremely dangerous opponent in his win over Samsonov. Now he faces a much different player in Kim Taek Soo. Kim is a player who always gets into the quarters or semis, but never into the finals. Ma exhibits some of his shotmaking capability in taking a 9-4 lead. Kim tries to kill at every opening, only to see the shot either blocked or countered by the agile Ma. Kim fights back with a spectacular highlight point to make it 9-11, and with a backhand kill is almost there at 12-13. All the effort appears to be of no avail as Ma executes textbook table tennis to move ahead again to 17-13. Ma finishes at 21-13 with a backhand block down the line. Ma continues the onslaught in the second game, blocking most of Kim's loops, then killing the return. Kim, however, still manages to move ahead to 12-11, only to have Ma block loop kill after loop kill to win these great exchanges. Then he again counter-kills a Kim kill attempt, and closes out to win at 18. In Game 3, Ma executes picture perfect table tennis to take a 10-2 lead. Kim is helplessly down 8-19, and loses at 8. Another dream is turned to dust by the technically superior Ma, the giant killer of two of the best, Samsonov and Kim.

Waldner starts his match against Kong with a back to the barrier lobbing exhibition that somehow wins the point. They exchange great shots one after the other, with Waldner maintaining a lead. This is truly great table tennis. The crowd groans as Waldner fails in one of his around-the- net attempts. This toe to toe battle of table tennis heavyweights reaches deuce. Then Waldner takes a net point and finishes with an all-out power point. He has to play his strongest as there is no room for his delicate touch game against Kong. Kong rebounds in Game 2, going ahead 7-2. Kong seems unstoppable in this game, taking all that Waldner can offer and going up 13-7. At 13-8, Kim takes Waldner's seemingly best kill shot and kills it back with a backhand flick. Kong digs a hole for Waldner at 19-12 and wins at 13. In Game 3, Waldner reveals his special serves to start 4-1. On his next service, he moves to 10-5. Against Kong's serves, he discovers that a no-spin guide of the ball over the net brings back a return he can kill, but Kong fights back to 8-12. Waldner tries a new serve/kill routine, but Kong answers back to 11-14. The next time Waldner tries his guide-the-ball return, Kong smashes it down his throat. A few Waldner misses, and it is 15-15. Bang, bang---16-16. Waldner uncorks two new serves and Kong returns both off the table, to make it Waldner 19-16. Whew---what a battle! At 20-18, a net ball gives Waldner a 2-1 lead and you can hear his sigh of relief. In Game 4, Waldner puts on his determined Manchester face, but it doesn't help as he is down 2-4. Kong now tries the guide-the-ball return of serve, but Waldner fights back to 5-5. It seems that every time Waldner gets into a forehand to forehand back from the table looping battle, Kong wins---yet somehow it is now 10-10. Waldner and Kong slug it out to an 18-14 Kong lead. Soon it is Kong at 20-15, so it looks like we get to enjoy a fifth game---but wait---Waldner serves back to 19-20. His next serve somehow is killed down the line, and Kong prevails.

At 4-4 in Game 5 between these two former World Champions, Waldner tries to win a point from the barrier---is he kidding? But on the next point, he unloads to show he definitely is not kidding as he continues to force his way to 10-5. This match must be seen to be believed. Kong is far from discouraged at 8-10. Waldner fights ahead to 14-8, only to have Kong kill another apparent kill, and the score goes to 11-14, then 13-15. Waldner invents a service return and Kong hits it off. Waldner serves, and he gives Kong a taste of his own medicine, killing a kill, then again. Now 19-15, 20-15, 21! This has got to be one of the greatest matches we have ever witnessed, and the standing ovation goes on and on, showing that the crowd agrees with us. Kong appeared to be incredibly perfect, but Waldner found yet another level of his own. This match should have been the final.

In his Quarter-Final match against Primorac, Schlager seems to have too may shots, and moves out to 14-8. Primorac gets into the swing of it, but still trails at 16-19. Some incredible Euro-spinning and it's 20-18, but that's as close as Primorac can get. At 3-2 in Game 2, we witness a most exceptional forehand and backhand looping exchange---one of the best in this tournament. Primorac maintains his almost manic intensity, and at 14-12 looks very strong. Schlager seems to have an answer, however, and keeps the score close, but Primorac manages to take Game 2 at 21-19. Game 3 sees Primorac at 10-5 when he and Schlager demonstrate once again how exciting European spin exchanges can be. Schlager pulls closer to 17-14. Primorac gets a high ball, winds up, and kills it emphatically---but somehow Schlager digs it out of nowhere to win the point. Down 16-19, Schlager serves, but manages just one more point, losing at 17.

Game 4 has Schlager, fighting to stay alive, moving ahead to 11-10. He features his backhand as much as his forehand...and possibly more. Shades of Grubba! Primorac's backhand becomes his countering weapon, and this strategy seems to work. With Schlager up 20-11, Primorac swats the ball into the net rather than waste his energy in a no-hope situation.. In Game 5, Schlager plays like a man possessed. He handles Primorac's serves with ease, and consistently beats him to the punch in opening his offense. Down 2-7, Primorac fights back to 6-9, but before he can catch his breath, he finds himself at the short end of a 19-11 score. At 19-12 Primorac seems to have made another point with an unreturnable shot, only to watch in dismay as Schlager returns the not-quite-a-winner with a real winner! After that point it is only a matter of time before Schlager walks away a 21-14 victory. There is no question now that he is a worthy semi-finalist.

In another Quarter-Final match, a vastly improved Persson finds himself facing Liu Guoliang, the hardest smasher in table tennis since Sweden's Johansson earned the nickname "the hammer." Down 1-4, Persson displays some of his better serves, but Liu is unconcerned, and proves it by moving ahead 16-6. In advancing this far in the tournament, Persson has shown he can never be counted out, but 7 points against 21 just doesn't do the trick! Persson comes out swinging the next game, fighting to a 4-1 lead. Liu goes into his serve and smash routines, and before the smoke clears, Persson trails 7-15, and loses the game at 10. Although this is three points better than the first, it is far from good enough. In Game 3, we find more of the same. Down 3-11 to the relentless Liu, Persson digs up a drop shot from close to the floor and lifts it high to Liu...who is waiting to put it away. Fate intervenes as the ball catches a backline edge, generating a laugh from the crowd. Encouraged by this small sign, Persson battles back to 11-14, but on the next point misses his patented "backhand swat-kill" (a unique shot featured in both our highlight videos). Not quite discouraged, Persson serves his way to 14-16, but that was his last gasp as Liu walks away to a 21-15 victory...to the joy of the raucous Chinese fans with their huge bongo drums. Persson, the '93 World Champion, had all but disappeared from the final rounds recently. He now seems to have recovered his form and has the ability to beat most, but not Liu, at least on this day.

Round of 16

Semi-finals and Finals

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