[Saba Sports News] He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu have reunited as a pair to compete in the 2026 Badminton Asia Championships. Although the duo lost 0-2 to the current world No.1 South Korean pair Kim Won-ho / Seo Seung-jae in the semi-finals, He Jiting, who had been absent from the international circuit for a long time, delivered an impressive performance. This delighted fans greatly and relieved the Chinese coaching staff, who had faced enormous pressure to recall him to the national team.
During the previous Paris Olympic cycle, as China’s men’s doubles badminton sector failed to form a stable and highly competitive partnership, the coaching team restructured the existing lineups, pairing He Jiting with Ren Xiangyu. The two quickly achieved remarkable results, claiming the men’s doubles titles at the 2023 Japan Open and the 2024 Thailand Masters, as well as winning the 2024 Thomas Cup team competition. Their world ranking once rose to fourth place.
However, in April 2025, a netizen claiming to be He Jiting’s ex-girlfriend leaked multiple chat records and phone recordings on social media, accusing He Jiting of verbally abusing teammates, coaches and officials, and allegedly being involved in gambling. The incident caused a huge public uproar. As a result, He Jiting was sent back to the Fujian provincial team and missed all international competitions following the 2025 All England Open Badminton Championships. It was not until early this year that He Jiting officially returned to the Chinese national badminton team after passing internal trials, a decision that drew heavy criticism toward the national team’s coaching staff.
In our opinion, the fundamental reason why the coaching staff insisted on recalling He Jiting despite huge pressure lies in China’s dismal men’s doubles results over the past year. The top pair Liang Weikeng / Wang Chang lacks consistency, the second pair Chen Baiyang / Liu Yi is weak in attack, and other young partnerships lack sufficient experience. Against this backdrop, the reunion of He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu is a understandable choice.