‘I won’t get carried away’: Faraji unfazed after stunning Asia’s elite
Iranian table tennis prodigy Benyamin Faraji insists he “won’t get carried away” after pulling off stunning upsets against two top-ranked players at the Asian Team Championships earlier in October.
The men’s competition was hardly one to remember for the Iranian team as before successive defeats to China, South Korea, and North Korea in the knockout phase saw the country settle for an eighth-place finish, though the result was still enough to secure a berth at next April’s ITTF World Team Championships in London.
Faraji, who first made the headlines by stunning Chinese world No. 1 and reigning world champion Wang Chuqin at last year’s Asian Championships, was back in giant-slaying mode in Bhubaneswar, India. The 15-year-old sensation came from behind to beat Lin Shidong – ranked second behind his compatriot in the ITTF World Ranking – 3-2 in the quarterfinals, before rallying from two games down to defeat South Korean world No. 13 An Jae-hyun in the 5th-8th placement match.
Faraji came within touching distance of beating Lin at the Asian Championships last year, only to relinquish a six-point lead in the deciding game to suffer a 3-2 defeat.
“The bitter taste of that defeat always stayed with me because I had come so close to beating Lin in our previous match,” Faraji told ISNA. “When we were scheduled to play China, I told the national team head coach, ‘If I get to play Lin, I will beat him this time. I am fully prepared.’ I was in the right mindset, not to mention I always play well against Chinese players.”
On the secret behind his sensational victory, Faraji said: “I had no significant technical or tactical superiority over Lin, but, as I said, I was fully prepared mentally and that’s what made the difference in the end.
“These individual wins come and go; what truly matters is the success of the team. A victory over China would have meant we beat the Olympic champion and secured a first-ever semifinal spot for Iran at the Asian Championships. Nonetheless, I am delighted with my victories over these table tennis giants, and hope I can maintain this momentum,” added the Iranian, who won a historic under-15 bronze at the 2024 World Youth Championships.
“After I defeated Lin, all eyes were on me but I kept my composure because the tournament wasn’t over – we still had a match against South Korea. An is formidable opponent and a former world bronze medalist. I lost the first two games, but managed to stage a comeback and win. It was a real thriller.
Despite already being regarded as a high-profile young prospect before the tournament, Faraji said the level of attention changed dramatically after his wins.
“So many fans asked for photos and selfies. Even during training sessions, all the cameras were on me. However, I won’t let any of this distract me. I won’t get carried away by these victories – they only motivate me to work harder and achieve even more,” Faraji said.
Reflecting on his growing dominance against Chinese players, Faraji said: “I beat most of my Chinese opponents at the junior level last year. I think I had an 8-3 record against them. A decade ago, Iranian players were quite intimidated when competing against the Chinese, but that’s not the case anymore as we play with no fear against them – a level of fearlessness I don’t see in players from other countries.
“Even though we couldn’t win a medal in this tournament, we’ve learned that we are getting closing the gap on China, Japan, and South Korea. As I said before, we used to be afraid of the Chinese, but this time, I was confident that we could win a medal. Perhaps we were a bit unlucky against China. I’m sure we can beat China and Japan in a couple of years and play with much more confidence at the next Asian Games.
When asked if he is concerned that, now as a well-known player, his tactics might be predictable for his future opponents, Faraji said: “We analyze every opponent the night before the match and I come up with a specific gameplan for each player.
“You might need long serves against an opponent, while against another, serving short could be the key. I won’t let anyone figure out my tactics as I have thousands of them at my disposal,” Faraji asserted.