Call him “Little Stone” if you want, but Lin Shidong was an absolute juggernaut at the Singapore Smash 2025!
The 19-year-old table tennis phenom stormed to victory, crushing teammate Liang Jingkun 4-2 (9-11, 11-8, 11-8, 6-11, 11-3, 11-2) in the men’s singles final at the OCBC Arena.
Not only did Lin walk away with a US$75,000 (S$ 101,547) cheque, but he also dethroned Wang Chuqin to become the new world No. 1.
Lin’s win sealed a remarkable treble, having already bagged the men’s doubles (with Wang) and mixed doubles (with Kuai Man) titles.
“It’s not easy to clinch all three titles here, but I gave it my all.”
“I wasn’t thinking about the world ranking, and didn’t do any calculations before the final. To me, it’s just a number and I need to focus on playing my best instead of the world ranking,” Lin said to The Straits Times.
The OCBC Arena was rocking with nearly 3,000 fans as Lin turned the final into his personal highlight reel.
Meanwhile, in the women’s singles final, Sun Yingsha proved why she’s the queen of the table, dispatching 21-year-old Kuai Man 4-1 (11-8, 9-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-6).
After a shock Olympic singles loss, Sun has gone full redemption mode, bagging back-to-back Grand Smash titles after winning in China last October.
PHOTO: CGTN