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 The 26-year-old had long been overshadowed by champion compatriots
Zhang Jike and Wang Hao in China's lofty pecking order but stepped
out of their shadows with a 4-2 win over Fang Bo on Sunday.
The win was just reward for hard graft, said Ma, who had been dumped
from the semi-finals by the now retired Wang at his three previous
world championships.
"It is like a dream come true. Having lost in the semi-finals at the
three world championships previously, honestly I have a lot of
pressure to earn this title," said Ma, who partnered with Zhang and
Wang to win the men's team gold at the London Olympics.
"At the end of the day I think these were worth it.
"Glory is attained from hard work, step by step. I hope I can go up
another level at Rio."
Ma's win helped China sweep all four of the men's and women's titles
in singles and doubles. China's Xu Xin teamed up with South Korea's
Yang Hae-un to win the mixed doubles.
Ma earned special praise from China's men's head coach Liu Guoliang.
"Ma's always been criticized from outside for lacking an edge. I
didn't see it that way tonight," Liu, a former Olympic and world
singles champion, told Chinese media after the title-decider. "He
set his emotions free."
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Though Ma took the prize, China can also celebrate the emergence of
yet another table tennis force in Fang, who upset the reigning
Olympic and world champion Zhang in the semi-finals.
Ma watched the match with interest and was left impressed by the
aggression of the previously unsung 23-year-old from the heartland
province of Hubei.
"I could feel his momentum was really fierce," Ma said.
(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Editing by Nick Mulvenney)
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