Many people have a ping pong table in the basement and may even think they are pretty good at it. But on Sunday, fans of the game in Pleasanton got a chance to see how the professionals do it, as a new league brings some of the best table tennis players in the world to the Bay Area.
The parking lot wasn’t exactly full, and the crowd inside was still quite small. But what can you expect from a sport that has always been a fun game to play with friends or family in this country?
Flint Lane wants to change that.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the fact that there is no professional table tennis in America,” he said. “Meanwhile, we have everything else pro. We have cornhole and pickleball and tag. There are many professional table tennis leagues all over the world, they are in Germany, they are in Poland, Spain, China. But this fabulously popular sport worldwide is in America never been professional. And I thought: why not us?’
So Lane founded “Major League Table Tennis” and although it is only entering its second season, there is no shortage of ambition here.
“Our hope is to model this after the NBA’s example,” Lane said. “We have eight teams, we’re going to expand. We have a draft, we have a lottery, we’re on TV. So we’re shooting high.”
Sunday’s tournament featured teams from Chicago, Portland, Carolina and a local team, the Bay Area Blasters. They play singles, doubles, and something called a “golden game,” which allows players to switch in and out during sets and is worth enough points to often decide the match.
“These athletes are jumping all over the place,” Lane said. “They’re in incredible shape. The ball is moving so fast, their reaction times are faster than any other sport. They have three meters to figure out what’s on that ball – what speed, what spin – so they can counter-attack, so these guys are really good.”
Things happen so quickly that most rallies are quite short. But occasionally it becomes a long-range battle with balls being smashed and returned from the back of the field. That seemed to impress Emilia Martins, who regularly plays for fun with friends in San Leandro.
“It’s fun to watch the real pros play. It seems like they start very soft and then hit the ball harder and harder and then get further and further away from the table. Where ours is almost always the same,” she said with a laugh.
It can also be inspiring for the children. The ‘Fun Zone’ has several tables set up for free play, and 10-year-old Sayan Jafareli gave the ball a spin with a mean chop shot.
“When I watch them play, I feel like I want to copy them and how hard they fight,” he said. “I also want to fight hard.”
The league is also fighting hard: to grow quickly and capture the attention of people who may not understand what it means to play at a world level. In fact, the competition has a playful motto: “Do you think you’re good?”
“Because everyone thinks they’re good,” Lane said. “I can beat anyone in my basement. But when they come out, they’re going to realize, oh my goodness, they had no idea what good is.”
They are truly among the best in the world. Of the 64 participants currently registered with a team, 25 have competed in the Olympic Games. But Blasters coach Timothy Wang said the competition is also good for the players.
“In the past, if you wanted to be a professional table tennis player, you had to go abroad to Europe or Asia, and the fact that this is the first in North America is huge.”
Major League Table Tennis returns to the Bay Area on January 10 and 12 at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton.
