Table Tennis: The Top 5 Men's Table Tennis Players in the World

The top 5 men’s table tennis players in the world have reached a level of greatness due to their perseverance, work ethic, and innate table tennis ability. Here at eTableTennis.com, we like to keep our visitors informed about who the world’s top ping pong players are since it’s a question that is sometimes asked by customers. With there being so many incredibly talented ping pong players throughout the globe, it can be difficult to accurately determine who the truly elite table tennis players are. However, since our team here at eTableTennis.com are table tennis enthusiasts, we’ve done our best to put together our list of the top 5 men’s ping pong players in the world. 

Determining the top men’s table tennis players down to only five (5) men is incredibly difficult, but our team has managed to do so. Our top 5 list takes into account ping pong player win record, skill level, and overall influence on the game of table tennis, so without further ado, here is our list of the top 5 men’s ping pong players in the world in no particular order:  

Xu Xin 

China's Xu Xin  is a phenomenal table tennis player who is known for his use of the penhold grip, which is very uncommon among younger Chinese players who often use the shakehold grip. Standing at nearly 6-feet tall, Xin has benefitted greatly from having a long wingspan which allows him to cover more area on the table tennis table and hit the ping pong ball in situations that other ping pong players cannot. Xu Xin has an arsenal of shot variations, excellent table tennis footwork, and terrific body control. Xin's high-level table tennis skills paid off handsomely last year when China took home the table tennis gold medal during the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  

Ma Long

China's Ma Long is arguably the top ping pong player in the world and a personal favorite of the eTableTennis.com team. Possessing incredible ping pong skills, Long currently holds the #1 ranking by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) and has held that position for over four years. What makes Long such a special table tennis player are his table tennis footwork, tremendous energy, and his deceptive playing style.  Ma Long is believed to possess the greatest two-winged looper in all of table tennis and his overall ping pong skills have resulted in the following accolades: 8 World Championships gold medals, 7 Table Tennis World Cup gold medals, and 3 Table Tennis Olympic Games gold medals. Although there are many great ping pong players, Ma Long has a strong chance to retire as the best to ever play the game of table tennis.  

Fan Zhendong 

20 year old Fan Zhendong is an exceptional Chinese ping pong player who is well-known for his highly-skilled shakehand grip playing style, incredible table tennis footwork, and great stamina.  Zhendong has drawn comparisons to Ma Long due to their comparable playing styles. Even though he is very young at only 20 years old, Fan Zhendong has a game far more skilled and dominant than his older, more established table tennis counterparts. As a result of his phenomenal ping pong skills, Zhendong has received 2 gold medals at the Table Tennis World Championships and 1 gold medal at the Table Tennis World Cup in 2016.  He's currently ranked #2 by the International Table Tennis Federation and has a chance of eventually becoming the top ping pong player in the world. 

Jun Mizutani

Japan's Jun Mizutani is a 27 year old ping pong player who has established himself as a top 5 table tennis player within the past year. Known for his left-handed shakehand grip playing style, the 5'8" Mizutani has dominated world competition for many years. At the age of 17, he became the youngest Japanese national champion and has won the table tennis national championship five years in a row, from 2007 to 2011.  Jun Mizutani has great table tennis instincts and has a great feel for the game so look for Mizuntani to challenge other great ping pong players for the designation of top ping pong player in the world. 

Dimitrij Ovtcharov

Germany's Dimitrij Ovtcharov is a terrific 6'1" table tennis player who is known for his unique serving techniques. The 28 year old Ovtcharov dominates the table tennis scene using a right-handed shakehand grip and is currently ranked as the #5 table tennis player in the world by the International Table Tennis Federation. Dimitrij Ovtcharov's 6'1 frame gives him a great advantage over the smaller competition because his long reach helps him cover more area on the ping pong table, which is key to his success.  Keep an eye on this great ping pong player because he has a chance to make his way into the top 3 ping pong players in the world if he keeps improving and refining his table tennis skills.  

Hopefully, eTableTennis.com has done a great job of naming and providing information on the top 5 men’s table tennis players in the world.  Whether your goal is to work your way to becoming one of the world’s top ping pong players, or if you are simply looking for quality table tennis equipment for your home, office, or rec-room, eTableTennis.com has you covered!  eTableTennis.com has a great selection of table tennis products including table tennis tables, ping pong paddles, ping pong balls, and table tennis nets. Please view our collections: Table Tennis Tables, Ping Pong Paddles, Table Tennis Balls, and Table Tennis Nets.

Our team here at eTableTennis.com wants to make sure that our visitors have the best ping pong buying experience possible so if you have any questions pertaining to any of our ping pong equipment, or simply want to check the availability of an item, feel free to contact an eTableTennis.com team member via live-chat or by phone.