Coach Li Sun (center), players Wang Yidi (left) and Chen Xingtong of China react during the women's teams final at the 2022 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan province on Oct 8, 2022. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

DURBAN, South Africa - China's table tennis team chief coach Li Sun said Thursday that the team's goal of striving to win every match remains unchanged at the upcoming 2023 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships (WTTC) Finals.

The Table Tennis Worlds will be held at the Durban International Convention Center (ICC) from May 20 to 28, marking the return of table tennis to Africa after 84 years.

Including China, participating teams started to train in the ICC on Wednesday, three days before the competition begins.

Discussing the historic table tennis event being held in Africa, China's table tennis team chief coach Li Sun said it will help bring the sport to the entire world, while also showcasing his confidence of China's campaign in Durban

"We can feel that players are excited about the tournament. Our training in Durban is continuity of what we trained in Chengdu. As we have trained four days here, our main task after coming into the competition venue is to adjust our players' mentality," said Li.

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"After players see the venue and opponents, their mentality may experience a bit up and down, so within the last days before the tournament opens, we need to better adjust our players for it," he added.

For Li, with World Table Tennis (WTT) Series events in place all year long, players from different associations have more chances of squaring off against each other. "So the key lies in your performance in the game," he explained.

Discussing the historic table tennis event being held in Africa, Li said it will help bring the sport to the entire world, while also showcasing his confidence of China's campaign in Durban.

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"Try to win every game, this is our unchanged goal. The Durban Table Tennis Worlds will play a pivotal role in our preparation for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games," he concluded.