Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin aim for the 2025 WTT US Open title, with Lin Shidong and Kuai Man standing in their way.

The "dream team" of South Korean table tennis, Lim Jonghoon (Korea Exchange) and Shin Yubin (Korean Air), will compete from July 3 to 13 (local time) at the 2025 WTT US Open in Las Vegas, attempting to achieve a three-week consecutive winning streak in the WTT series.

South Korea’s mixed doubles "dream duo" Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin (right).

Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin are the only Korean pair participating in the mixed doubles event at this US Open, starting from the main draw round of 32. Before the official draw, the ITTF world-ranked 5th pair Lim/Shin will be seeded second in mixed doubles, following the world number one Chinese pair Lin Shidong and Kuai Man.

Until last week, Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin won back-to-back mixed doubles titles at the 2025 WTT series events in Ljubljana and Zagreb.

With only one mixed doubles pair allowed per country (region), Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin are targeting a three-week consecutive WTT series championship, with their biggest rivals being Lin Shidong and Kuai Man. After dominating last October’s WTT China Grand Slam, Lin and Kuai also conquered the WTT Singapore Grand Slam this February, overtaking the 2024 Paris Olympic champions Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha to become world number one.

World number one Chinese powerhouse duo Lin Shidong and Kuai Man.

According to Korean media, as the top two seeds, Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin will not face Lin Shidong and Kuai Man before the final. However, the world number three Hong Kong pair Wong Chun Ting and Doo Hoi Kem, and the fourth-ranked Japanese duo Matsushima Hiku and Harimoto Miwa also pose significant threats. Wong and Doo lost 0-4 to Lim and Shin in the 2024 Paris Olympics mixed doubles bronze medal match. Additionally, Matsushima and Harimoto were runners-up, losing 1-3 to Lin and Kuai in this year’s Singapore Grand Slam mixed doubles final.

Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin claimed mixed doubles titles at the 2025 WTT Ljubljana and Zagreb events, where Chinese top players were absent. However, to win the US Open title, they must face strong opponents. Analysts believe their chemistry and form are improving with each match, and their recent major titles reflect an upward trend, which are key advantages.

However, in the semifinals of last year’s Paris Olympics, Lim and Shin lost 2-4 to the Chinese pair Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha. Again, in the May Doha World Table Tennis Championships singles semifinals, they were defeated 0-3 by Wang and Sun. Overcoming this Chinese barrier will be crucial for their three-week championship challenge.

Lim Jonghoon will partner with fellow teammate An Jaehyun (right) in the men’s doubles competition.

If Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin capture the US Open mixed doubles title, it will be their fourth WTT series championship this year, including the March event in Chennai. Additionally, Lim will team up with junior teammate An Jaehyun in men’s doubles to pursue the WTT US Open title. Two weeks ago at the Ljubljana event, Lim and An defeated the world number one French Lebrun brothers 3-0 in the men’s doubles final to claim the trophy.

Shin Yubin will partner with Hong Kong star Doo Hoi Kem in the women’s doubles at the WTT US Open, instead of her recent partner Choi Hyojoo. Following the rule that only one doubles pair per country can enter, South Korea’s women’s doubles representatives are Yoon Hanna and Kim Naeun, champions two weeks ago at the WTT regular challenge in Skopje. Since players can form up to two cross-national doubles pairs, Shin’s new partner is Doo Hoi Kem.