Upon becoming the first-ever men's paddler to win four gold medals at a single Asian Games, Wang Chuqin is taking some time to absorb what, to him, seems to be a slightly surreal scenario in Hangzhou, especially considering the setbacks he encountered just a month ago.

The world's second-ranked player suffered an early exit at the Asian Championships held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, in September, missing out on a spot in the last 32 after being stunned by world No 61 Yuta Tanaka of Japan.

"I was quite disappointed with my performance at the Asian Championships. After losing at an early stage, I was deeply affected by self-doubt, and I felt that everything was wrong," Wang admitted in an exclusive interview with Xinhua, while reflecting on his adjustment shortly thereafter with the assistance of coaches and team members.

"When I learned that I would compete in four events at the Hangzhou Asiad, I was not sure how I would perform," he added.

"Luckily, we had a few days of adjustment after we returned to Beijing from the Asian Championships, and the coaching group helped us analyze our performances. My coaches encouraged me with their experience, and I managed to find relief with every win here at the Asian Games."

Wang emerged victorious in a full-game thriller over his compatriot and world No 1 Fan Zhendong in the men's singles final on Monday, adding to his earlier victories in the team, doubles, and mixed doubles events.

Prior to the singles title showdown, Fan held a win-loss record of 9-2 against Wang in international competitions and had won all three encounters this year, highlighted by his 4-2 victory over Wang to retain his title at the World Championships in Durban, South Africa, in May.

"I just approached this game with a mindset of going for the win, and that was quite important," revealed Wang.

After scoring his last point, Wang tossed his paddle, spread his arms wide, and shook his head continuously in celebration.

"For sure, it's unbelievable. Winning the deciding game from 4-7 down, it seemed that I had made a breakthrough," Wang explained.

"In Durban, it took time, training, and mentality to grasp the constantly changing opportunities."

"As I had lost many times before, I just kept calm and took my chance to win, which was a breakthrough for me," he added.

Discussing his rivalry with Fan, Wang said, "It's a fine tradition in the Chinese table tennis team, whether between our predecessors or us now. We just face up to this positive competition."

Regarding his maiden singles gold at the Asiad, "It means a lot to me; I hope that I can enjoy better performances and grow quickly in the future," he said.

Born in 2000, Wang has gradually taken center stage in men's table tennis in recent years, and he rose to world No 1 for the first time in July.

"As Chinese players, rather than the world rankings, we are more concerned about how we perform in major competitions for our country, whether in team or singles events."

"For us, we hope to gain favorable results, not world rankings. Higher rankings will come as you improve your results in big tournaments," he said.

After concluding their Hangzhou Asiad campaign, Wang and the other Chinese team members will soon shift their focus to the World Table Tennis (WTT) Star Contender held in Lanzhou, Northwest China's Gansu province.

"Everything starts from scratch off the podium; I expect better performances from myself in my upcoming competitions," said Wang.

Looking ahead to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, he said, "Everyone is anticipating the Paris Olympics, but first, you need to have the capability of grasping the opportunity, so we need to grind out this year to stand out from the fierce competition within our team."

While expressing his aspiration for the Olympics, Wang remained humble and vowed to strive to become a better player.

"So many (aspects that I need to improve), I can't totally figure them out," he concluded.

Xinhua