Why they rank here
The finest penhold player of the modern era, Ma Lin was a master of serve, short game and the reverse-penhold backhand who won four Women's, and men's, World Cup singles titles, a men's record, in 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2006. His crowning achievement was Olympic singles gold at Beijing 2008, won in front of a home crowd, along with team and doubles golds. The conspicuous gap in his record is a World Championship singles title, which repeatedly slipped away and denied him the career Grand Slam. Renowned for the finest serve and touch of his generation, he kept the classical penhold style competitive at the very top even as shakehand play came to dominate the sport.
Career profile
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