No 1 Boll still bows to China's best

German great Timo Boll says becoming the world's oldest table tennis No 1 came as a pleasant surprise but believes either of his big Chinese rivals are more worthy of top spot.

Boll, who turns 37 on March 8, has replaced countryman Dimitri Ovtcharov at the summit of the latest International Table Tennis Federation rankings, thanks in large part to his victory at last month's Europe Top 16 Cup in Montreux, Switzerland.

Reaching top spot, for the fourth time in his career, at 36 years, 11 months and 21 days makes Boll by far the sport's oldest No 1 - that honor was previously held by Swede Jan-Ove Waldner (32 years and 28 days in 1997).