World champs Ma Long, Liu Shiwen to lead Chinese team at Busan table tennis worlds

Qin Zhijian, head coach of the men's national team, and his counterpart of the women's side, Li Sun, told media that the list was decided after a thorough discussion between the coaching staff, with the preparation for the Tokyo Olympic Games taken into consideration.

"We discussed over the possible rivalries at the upcoming team worlds and at the Olympics half a year later, and took a comprehensive evaluation of every individual player before making a decision on the team roster," Qin said.

"All the efforts we made before and during the team worlds are to ensure we prepare a best squad possible for the Tokyo Games," he added.