Japanese star Kenji Matsudaira, recently signed to Team JOOLA, made a bold return to one of the biggest stages in table tennis - the 2025 World Table Tennis Championship Finals in Doha, Qatar. 

Matusdaira, who last stepped on the stage at this event back in 2013, successfully navigated his way through Japan's internal qualification tournaments to earn the 5th place on the team.

Plenty of time has passed since the time Matusdaira was an active force for Japan on the international stage, alongside brother Kenta. Kenji held a peak World Ranking of 34th back in 2012, the same year that he won a bronze medal in the World Championship Team event with Japan. 

News of his return certainly turned heads and in his opening Round of 128 match he did not disappoint. An electric performance led to a 4-0 win over Algeria's Mehdi Bouloussa.

Matsudaira exhibited great speed over the table and some exceptional range backed off the table. 

The Round of 64 would see JOOLA teammates face off. Daniel Habesohn was able to lift the bar and for Kenji he wasn't able to catch any momentum in the match. A triumph for Habesohn who advanced into the Round of 32, but an emotional disappointment for Matusdaira. 

In an emotion post-match interview it was clear that Matsudaira had hoped to deliver more in the match, and is determined to on his next appearance.

For now, he can relish in the moment, making it back to a World Championships 12 years on from his last appearance among a nation of some of the world's strongest table tennis competition. What will Kenji Matsudaira have on the cards next? We will have to wait and see!