Much to remember about ITFF 2015 in Suzhou

With all his strength and confidence, Ma Long marches into the semi-finals again, approaching toward his first Men's Singles champ. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

The ITTF 2015 Championship has ended in Suzhou, leaving much to the fans to keep as precious memories for long. Ma Long's long-standing dream has come true as he finally won the world championship title in Men's Singles.

However, the path to the title has not been an easy ride for him.

With a clean and tidy 4-0 smash over Tang Peng, Ma Long moved on and first secured a place in Men's Singles semi-finals at the Suzhou International Expo Center during the 2015 Table Tennis Championships in Suzhou on May 3.

When asked about the possible encounter with his previous Men's Doubles partner Timo Boll (GER), Ma replied in a peaceful but resolute way. "Whoever my opponent might be in the semi-finals, I'll prepare fully," he said.

He sounded determined not to make the 'mistakes' he said he did during his match with Tang Peng, almost in a way to signal his upcoming title winning performance. "I made several faults in this game. Definitely I'll try my best to avoid them in my next match," he wowed.

To the disappointment of many fans of his, Ma Long's previous Men's Doubles partner Timo Boll didn't make it into the semi-finals, with a 2-4 loss to China's Fan Zhendong, which also rendered it impossible to see Ma Long and Boll on the same field in the championship in Suzhou again.

When talking about his near-miss with Ma Long, Boll sounded regretful: "I was looking forward to playing against him, but now …"

However, the audience may have helped him recover well in his last performance in Suzhou. "It's really a big moment to play the world championships in China against a Chinese player, and the crowds are behind me. They had me come back and keep on fighting. I hope they enjoyed it."

Boll tries his best to return the ball. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

As for his future plans, Boll said he would carry on and play in the next world championships in Dusseldorf, Germany, in 2017. "Why not?" he asked and went on saying, "It's in Germany, my home field. It is not time for me to retire yet. " He seemed relieved from the game.

It is always hard for his fans to say goodbye to him. But, that was the ITTF 2015 World Championships in Suzhou that has left much to ponder about.

Edited by Mevlut Katik