Former Olympic champion Mima Ito has been dropped from Japan’s latest national table tennis squad, replaced by 28-year-old breakthrough player Hitomi Sato, who finished runner-up at the recent WTT China Smash.

Across the border, meanwhile, followers of rival powerhouses China have focused their attention on widely circulated Chinese media reports that the Japan Table Tennis Association plans to dismantle the high-profile mixed-doubles pairing of Sora Matsushima and Miwa Harimoto.

Under the reported plan, Matsushima would step back from multi-event duties to focus exclusively on men’s singles, clearing the way for Miwa to join forces with her older brother Tomokazu to create a potentially formidable combination.

World No 3 Miwa Harimoto was named in the Japan Table Tennis Association (JTTA)’s national team roster for the second half of the 2026 season named on Thursday, with the seven-player women’s squad headlined by the 18-year-old.

The notable omission was 25-year-old Ito, who missed out on both the primary roster and the reserve list. The remaining spots on the primary roster went to Hina Hayata, Satsuki Odo, Hitomi Sato, Honoka Hashimoto, Miyu Nagasaki and Rin Mende.

A core member of Japan’s elite set-up since the 2016 Rio Olympics, Ito famously partnered Jun Mizutani to defeat China and secure Japan’s first Olympic table tennis gold medal in mixed doubles at the Tokyo Games four years later. Ito captured the full set of medals in 2020, adding a women’s team silver and a singles bronze.

Taking her place on the primary roster is Sato, who earned promotion after reaching the women’s singles final at last week’s China Smash in Beijing.

During her run, Sato ousted Chinese contenders Zhu Sibing and Chen Xingtong in succession to become the first defensive chopper in history to reach a WTT Grand Smash singles final, where she lost to world No 2 Wang Manyu.

Meanwhile, Japan’s men’s primary roster remained unchanged from the first half of the season. The five-player line-up is led by new world No 1 Matsushima, alongside Tomokazu Harimoto, Shunsuke Togami, Hiroto Shinozuka and Yukiya Uda.

While the Sora Matsushima-Miwa Harimoto split has not been officially confirmed, fans believe the move carries substance, stoking debate and concern among Chinese table tennis followers.

Having previously teamed up at youth level, Matsushima and Harimoto captured the WTT Star Contender Doha title on their senior debut as a pair early last year. However, while solid, their partnership had yet to establish itself at the very summit of the discipline.

Tensions flared after their semi-final loss to South Korea’s Lim Jong-hoon and Shin Yu-bin at the China Smash, where Matsushima visibly vented his frustration on court. In a post-match interview, Miwa conceded: “Neither of us can understand each other’s playing style in mixed doubles; we’re just playing freely.”By contrast, Matsushima produced a dominant run in men’s singles, defeating Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yun-ju in the final to claim his second WTT Grand Smash crown of the year.

Speaking at the post-match press conference in Beijing, Matsushima was unequivocal about his priorities, acknowledging that doubles was not his natural forte.

“First of all, among the three events I play, singles is the most important to me, and my feelings towards singles are different from any other event,” Matsushima said.

“However, as long as I am playing doubles and mixed doubles, I understand that as Team Japan, we have to win, of course. But I am not very good at doubles and mixed doubles. Having won the title in singles this time, I have a stronger desire to produce more results in singles.”Matsushima has repeatedly stated that he aimed to win the men’s singles gold at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

The prospect of a Harimoto sibling partnership and Matsushima’s singles specialisation prompted immediate reaction across Chinese social media.

Some highlighted the pressure of family dynamics, with one user writing: “The chemistry and pressure of a brother-sister pairing: anyone who has fought side-by-side understands how complicated that is.”

Others remained optimistic about the duo’s potential. “Looking forward to their upcoming matches,” a commenter posted. “They’ve trained together since childhood, and as a duo, they certainly have real strength.”

A tactical observer pointed to the logistical challenge of two right-handed players. “The only drawback is that both are right-handed,” the fan noted. “If the siblings join forces to attack aggressively in the first three shots, they can largely cover up the footwork issues of having two right-handers.”

Meanwhile, many endorsed Matsushima’s singular focus. “Matsushima himself said he isn’t good at doubles,” one widely shared post read. “Specialising in singles makes far more sense than forcing him to juggle multiple events – it’s reasonable.”