CHARLOTTE, N.C. — What happens when you lose Satoshi Aida, Hong Lin and Sid Naresh in one offseason?

‍

The Carolina Gold Rush’s (3-0, 43 points) answer: you’re still the team to beat in the East Division.

‍

That shouldn’t be the case. It takes weeks for chemistry to develop, even for the defending champions. And yet, the new-look Gold Rush came to Charlotte this weekend and became the first Major League Table Tennis team to win three consecutive matches of Season 3.

‍

They still have some continuity. Season 1 MVP Enzo Angles (SPINDEX: 2753) impressed. So did veterans Eugene Wang (2775) and Kai Zhang (2621). But it’s hard to say that the Gold Rush would have left Charlotte undefeated without help from two of their rookies: second-round pick Chen Sun (2598) and third-round pick Mohamed Shouman (2714).

‍

Sun dominated Singles 2 with the poise and presence of a longtime MLTT veteran. She lost only one game to Atlanta’s Minhyung Jee (2491) on Friday, but swept Florida’s Tashiya Piyadasa (2407) on Saturday and New York’s Tiffany Ke (2408) on Sunday to go 8-1 in singles games this weekend. And in her Golden Games, she outscored each of her opponents and even won Saturday’s final Golden Point over Piyadasa.

‍

“I trust her, because she’s so experienced,” Gold Rush coach Shigang “Alex” Yang said. “I think she can win.”

‍

‍

On paper, Shouman looked like the underdog in each of his singles sets. The rookie faced Atlanta’s Jeet Chandra (2654) on Friday, Florida’s Daniel Gorak (2696) on Saturday and New York’s Jishan Liang (2683) on Sunday. It didn’t take long for Shouman to flip that narrative, sweeping Chandra and taking two of three from Gorak. He had a little bit of trouble against Liang, but he had already won the home crowd over with his passionate energy, intense rallies and his ability to rise to any occasion.

‍

In just their first week with the Gold Rush, Sun and Shouman proved how valuable they were to the defending champions. That’s why it felt right for MLTT to name them Female and Male Player of Week 2 on Monday. It’s the first time all season that two rookies won this award, as well as two players who represented the same team.

‍

It wasn’t just these two players. The Gold Rush won their first three games thanks to a complete team effort, from the rookies to the veterans, to the coaches. If this week is any indication of the future, then the Gold Rush aren’t going anywhere.

‍

“We prepared for this,” Shouman said. “From the start, we said to each other … ‘Winning these three matches is very important to us.’”

‍

‍

New York Slice

The New York Slice (2-1, 32 points) came so close to a perfect weekend. They began their week with 13-8 victories over Florida on Friday and Atlanta on Saturday, but their good fortune ran out on Sunday with their 6-15 loss to Carolina.

‍

Still, there was a lot to love about the first three matches in New York Slice history. There’s only one place to start: second overall pick Koki Niwa (2815). The Olympic medalist came to MLTT with massive expectations, and he surpassed nearly every one of them. He opened every match for the Slice and won five of his first six singles sets. He adapted remarkably well to the MLTT format, scoring 12 total Golden Game points and creating a dangerous open serve doubles duo with Yiran Wu (2700), which went 4-2 over the weekend.

‍

The Slice could immediately feel Niwa’s presence as soon as he first approached the table. And his stellar play reminded the crowd why he’s had such a successful table tennis career.

‍

“I don’t think we could have had a better person to lead things off,” Slice coach Adam Hugh said. “He’s been a professional from the get-go.”

‍

‍

The Slice also received plenty of help from free agent Tiffany Ke. Despite going 2-7 in her singles sets, she rose to the occasion in her Golden Games. She outdueled Florida’s Tashiya Piyadasa and Atlanta’s Minhyung Jee in her first two Golden Games this season, and she scored that coveted 21st point both times.

‍

“It was incredible,” Hugh said. “Tiffany went out there, no fear whatsoever, [and] went for her shots [with] total confidence.”

‍

‍

When they return to the table for Week 4 in Chicago, they’ll likely do so with reinforcements. They missed Kaden Xu all weekend with what Hugh described as a “minor injury,” but all signs indicate that Xu’s Slice debut is not far away.

‍

Veterans Wu, Jishan Liang, Haocheng Wang (2690) and Wenzhang Tao (2716) all provided valuable contributions during their team’s debut weekend. They came together and proved that the Slice aren't just some expansion team. They’re a dangerous unit that can contend in the East.

‍

Atlanta Blazers

The Atlanta Blazers (0-3, 21 points) had a rough weekend. They left Charlotte still searching for their first win, and they lost each of their Golden Games by just four points or less.

‍

With that said, the Blazers still showed enough to keep their fans ignited. Yuya Oshima (2806) certainly lived up to his No. 1 overall pick status, going 7-2 in singles and giving the likes of Enzo Angles and Koki Niwa some trouble. Second-round pick Kayama Yu (2773) impressed as a rookie, and he posted a 5-4 doubles record alongside Tom Feng (2657).

‍

Jeet Chandra had three exceptional Golden Games, going 15-9 against Kai Zhang, Yiran Wu and Chihwei Yeh (2680). Fifth-round pick Minhyung Jee looked steady and consistent throughout each of the singles matches she played in, even sweeping New York’s Tiffany Ke.

‍

‍

Their Golden Game performance kept them from what could have been a 2-1 record. They entered two of their three Golden Games in the lead, but they couldn’t convert that into match wins. Chandra was the only Blazer to outscore their opponent against both Carolina and New York, leading to losses that could have easily turned into wins if just a few more points had gone in their favor.

‍

That’s a huge reason why the Blazers are not as underwhelming as their record would suggest. Rocky start aside, they still have a very talented roster that coach Suzi Battison has gotten quite a lot out of. As soon as this expansion team can figure out the Golden Game, they could become a real threat to make some noise in the postseason.

‍

Florida Crocs

It’s difficult not to think of the Florida Crocs (2-4, 56 points) and ask a simple question: “What if Liam Pitchford (2897) were here?” The Crocs’ cornerstone will be sidelined indefinitely with a hip injury that will require surgery to fix. But if he were with the Crocs, what would have changed? Would they have turned their 21-19 Golden Game loss against New York into a victory? Would they have won that final Golden Point against Carolina? Would they have scored the three points needed to turn their 1-3 record this weekend into a 3-0 clean sweep?

‍

It’s hard to tell. But it’s very clear that even without Pitchford, the Crocs are in good hands. Marc Duran (2732) rebounded from an average Week 1 and turned in a stellar Week 2, taking two of three singles matches from both Enzo Angles and Yiran Wu and sweeping Jeet Chandra. Duran came through when it mattered, too. His seven Golden Game points on Friday against Jishan Liang were the most any player scored in a single match all weekend.

‍

“This is how I like to play: fighting, feeling in the game,” Duran said. “This gives me more power to be more concentrated and to be more focused in the match.”

‍

‍

Daniel Gorak routinely took on his opponents’ top players in Singles, and he made it very difficult for them to beat him. He took one from both Yuya Oshima and Mohamed Shouman while pushing them to their limits, and he took two of three from Haocheng Wang. All of his losses came within five points or less.

‍

Rookie Asuka Sakai (2754) opened the week for the Crocs and performed admirably against Koki Niwa. He lost his first two games by four points before handing Niwa the first loss of his MLTT career. It was smooth sailing for Sakai from there, taking two of three from both Eugene Wang and Kayama Yu.

‍

Peiyu Zhu (2597) could not participate in this weekend’s matches for Florida, so free agent Tashiya Piyadasa took her place. At just 15 years old, Piyadasa became the youngest female player in MLTT history, and she held her own against both Tiffany Ke and Chen Sun before sweeping Minhyung Jee in Singles 2 on Sunday.

‍

The Crocs, who have now had two weekends’ worth of matches, sit at 2-4 this season. It’s hard to tell how different that record would look with Pitchford, but this Crocs team is still going to fight for a postseason berth regardless of who’s missing.

‍