As they say, there is a first time for everything. For China's Wang Manyu, the 2019 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals presents the perfect opportunity to try something new. The 20-year-old shakehand attacker has enjoyed plenty of success on the ITTF World Tour, already the owner of five women's singles titles in the last two years. The current Grand Finals in Zhengzhou, China is a prestigious, invite-only tournament for the top 16 finishers on the 2019 ITTF World Tour. Wang, seeded fourth, has battled all the way to the final. There, she meets her Chinese teammate Chen Meng, winner of the last two World Tour Grand Finals. Experience would certainly favor the incumbent. It is unlikely to have escaped Chen's attention, however, that Wang has beaten three straight compatriots to reach the final, tallying a combined 12-1 record in games. The men's singles finals, by contrast, features two former champions in Ma Long and Fan Zhendong. Whether Fan claims his second title or Ma pads his record with a staggering sixth win, the championship will be someone's encore performance. It remains to be seen whether the same will be true in the women's singles. While Chen Meng will be hunting for a turkey, Wang Manyu aims to make her maiden mark. After all, every former champion had to win for the first time sometime.

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