Ping Pong: The Triumph Movie Review Deng Chao Recalls Chinas Overcoming Of Table Tennis Struggles In Rousing 1990sset Sports Drama

• The story of China's brief defeat in world table tennis follows coach Dai Mingjia (played by director Deng Chao) trying to change their fortunes.
• His team of retired, injured and overseas players go through montages of classic practices, listen to pep talks and regain their dignity.

3/5 stars

It may be hard to believe that Chinese dominance in table tennis has ever been seriously threatened given its consistent performances over the past few decades.

However, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, China's dominance as world champions was interrupted by Sweden, which developed a new style of play in which Chinese players struggled to regain their place in the sport.

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Table tennis. Triumph , directed and starring Deng Chao, dramatizes this twist in fortunes, following former players head coach Dai Mingjia as he vows to bring the national team back to winning ways.

After a difficult time in Italy, Dai (Deng) reluctantly returns to China with his wife (Sun Li) in 1991 and is quickly promoted to head coach of the national team.

After promising to return the Swetling Cup to the men's world champions within two years, he inherited a team in disarray and an infrastructure unable to keep pace with new developments in sports technology.

© Ping-Pong as Wang Yin courtesy of Sun Li of the South China Morning Post . In the lap of victory.

Before the 1993 World Championships in Gothenburg, Dyke was forced to assemble a group of diehard veterans, injured All-Stars and untested youngsters and somehow curry favor with them.

His off-the-wall tactics caused uproar among the country's leadership, but his willingness to adapt and learn from the European champions allowed him to eventually rebuild a world-class team.

Other recent Chinese epics, such as Feng Xiaogang's Youth and Peter Chan Hosun's Leap, are compatible with Ping-Pong . Vijay” is a sophisticated and sophisticated production driven by national pride and vivid nostalgia.

© South China Morning Post Table Tennis Photo.

In an affectionate 90s setting, China is portrayed as a nation on the rise, full of positivity and opportunity, as young people push themselves through the snow and the Great Wall to rebuild their country. Moves from sports dramas as easily as career films.

Fortunately, Yu Baim and Meng Hui's script refrains from demonizing China's international rivals for the most part, while a lively ensemble cast including Timi Ju Weizhou, Duan Bowen, Cai Yida, Ding Guansen and Sun Shilong allows us to include the individual characters we have. gives Investment challenges and struggles. A team called five Tiger Generals when they weren't on the table.

© Courtesy of South China Morning Post Sun Li (front) and Deng Chao as Ping-Pong Dai Mingjia;

Although perhaps not a classic game for this age group, ping pong is. Triumph must find its target audience.

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This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), a leading news outlet in China and Asia.

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