Liang Jingkun
China
China
Liang Jingkun has been a prominent figure among the top ten highest-ranked table tennis players worldwide. He also reached a career-high third-place ranking sometime in 2022, a position he would eventually lose. That said, he’s had an eventful career, and there’s no denying he still ranks among the best players. But what equipment does he use, what is his net worth, and is the ping pong superstar married or not? We answer these questions and more below.
Quick Facts
Biography
Born in Tangshan city, China, on 20th October 1996, Liang Jingkun’s professional table tennis career began in 2014 when he had a breakthrough season. He got a bronze medal in the Swedish open and a similar accolade the following year.
While not many can say they’ve made it into the top five or even the top ten superstars in any given sport, Liang Jingkun can claim that honor. He is a regular among the top ten, with his highest ranking being third. However, whether it’s due to a lack of consistency or stiff competition, Liang hasn’t been able to break into the #1 spot.
He is has a fairly impressive record against some of the opponents jostling for the top spots. His record against Fan Zhendong, the current highest-rated player in the ITTF world rankings, is five wins and 11 losses.
One of his wins against Zhendong came in the 2019 World Table Tennis Championship, where he beat him in the round of 16. He didn’t, however, make it to the end of the tournament as he would be eliminated later by Ma Long, considered the greatest of all time.
He has three wins and six losses against another heavy hitter like Wang Chuqin.
Nevertheless, looking at his career in general, it is fairly impressive, and of his over 400 matches played, he maintains a win rate percentage in the high 70s. His highest number of wins seems to have come in 2019, when he played over 100 games and won 81, including the doubles and team events.
It’s also worth noting he plays for the Shangdong Weiqiao TTC Club in addition to China’s national team. The team has also been represented by Ma Long during the 2016 Chinese Super League.
Career
Liang JingKun’s career officially kicked off when he was named to the China team for the 2015 World Table Tennis Championships. He’s mostly been able to take silver and bronze medals for many of the singles competitions he’s participated in.
Nevertheless, he has also managed to take home a few major accolades. One example is when he won the 2018 Chinese National Championship. More recently, he won the Chinese Super League in 2021.
Also among his greatest achievements is he climbed the ranks and became the third highest-rated player at some point in 2022. However, he has since fallen off after a defeat to French teenager Alexis Lebrun.
Liang Jinkun Playing Style
Lian Jinkun’s play style is fairly unique, with the player preferring to stay close to the table. He also seems to have a weakness in long rallies and therefore tries to finish games quickly if possible. As such, you may notice explosive power in a bid to overwhelm opponents early on in the game.
He uses a shakehand grip like most of his Chinese teammates. However, there are other grip variations to choose from for players interested in trying out the Olympic sport. Fortunately, we have a guide on how to hold ping pong paddles to match different play styles, whether using the shakehand or other grip variations.
Of course, the grip also plays a big role in which paddles you use. If you settle on the penhold grip, you should check out our best ping pong paddles for penhold grip list.
Liang Jinkun Olympics
Liang Jinkun has had no glory in the two Olympic events held during his career. However, given Liang is quite young, he may yet have one or two more chances depending on when he decides to retire.
Honors And Achievements
- Australian Open – 2018 – singles – gold
- Beijing National Championship – 2018 – singles – gold
- Portugal open – 2019 – singles – gold
- WTT Contender Laško – 2021 – singles – gold
- WTT Contender Novo Mesto – 2021 – singles – gold
- WTT Contender Musca – 2022 – singles – gold
- Hungarian Open – 2019 – doubles – gold
- Hong Kong Open – 2019 – doubles – gold
- German Open – 2019 – doubles – gold
- Austrian Open – 2019 – doubles – gold
- Yogakarta – 2019 – doubles – gold
- Tokyo World Cup – 2019 – teams – gold
- Yogakarta – 2019 – teams – gold
- Chengdu – 2022 – teams – gold
Net Worth and Income
As of 2022, Liang Jinkun’s net worth stood at approximately $1.5 million. While it may not match up to table tennis players like Ma Long, who was worth an estimated $20 million, it still puts him in the top 1.2% of wealthiest people worldwide, according to Statista.
Social Media
Liang Jinkun isn’t big on social media, and there are also no official fan pages either.
Personal Life
While not technically married, Liang Jingkun has been dating his long-time girlfriend, Xi Meimei, with the couple also having a baby. That said, there are also rumors of their split.
Videos
Final Thoughts
Even without many golds to his name, Liang Jinkun has achieved a lot in his career. His play style may need some refinement and improvement. He would also need a bit more consistency in the major tournaments, something that more maturity in the game may be able to bring him.