Korea's mixed doubles table tennis pair "Im Jong-hun (Korea Exchange (KRX))–Shin Yu-bin (Korean Air)" climbed to the top at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Finals 2025. This is the first time a Korean player has won the WTT Finals.
Im Jong-hun and Shin Yu-bin defeated China's Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha 3-0 (11-9, 11-8, 11-6) in the mixed doubles final held on the 13th in Hong Kong (local time).
The WTT Finals is a "king of kings" event in which players with high ranking points, based on results from WTT series such as Grand Smash, Champions, and Contender, are invited to determine the winner.
With the win, Im Jong-hun and Shin Yu-bin earned their first victory over Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha, who were called their "nemesis." Until this tournament, Im Jong-hun and Shin Yu-bin had been 0-6 against Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha. They also lost in the Paris Olympics semifinal last year (2-4) and the Doha World Championships semifinal in May this year (0-3).
Im Jong-hun and Shin Yu-bin advanced to the final by beating China's Lin Shidong and Kuai Man 3-1 in the semifinals of this tournament. In the final, they seized the flow by going on the attack aggressively from the start.
Game 1 was tight up to 9-9, but they took the set after Im Jong-hun's attack created a lead and the opponents made mistakes. In Game 2, they pulled away with consecutive points; although they allowed a chase to 9-8, the opponents' unforced errors continued, making the game score 2-0.
In Game 3, they trailed 3-4 early but came from behind. At 10-6 match point, Wang Chuqin's attack went off the table, sealing the title.
The Chinese pair handed over the trophy as the aftereffects of Sun Yingsha injuring her left ankle in the women's singles semifinals overlapped.