Chinese table tennis players showcased their dominance at the WTT Champions Incheon, with all seven athletes securing spots in the quarterfinals on Friday.
On the men’s side, China fielded Fan Zhendong, Ma Long, and Liang Jingkun, while the women’s roster included top-ranked Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Chen Meng, and Wang Yidi. Notably, world No.1 Wang Chuqin was rested for this event.
In the men’s singles, second seed Liang Jingkun overcame a shaky start to defeat Slovenia’s Darko Jorgic 3-1 (7-11, 12-10, 11-7, 11-7). “I have played against Darko several times before, so I prepared well for this match,” Liang remarked. “I wasn’t fully ready at the start, which led to losing the first game. After that, I adjusted my mentality, fought point by point, and sealed the win.”
Veteran Ma Long continued his impressive form by beating South Korea’s Lim Jong-hoon 3-1. Top seed Fan Zhendong dispatched Germany’s Patrick Franziska in straight sets, demonstrating his top-tier skills.
In the women’s singles, world No.1 Sun Yingsha cruised past Sweden’s Linda Bergstrom with a 3-1 victory (11-3, 11-3, 9-11, 13-11). Despite a brief challenge in the third game, Sun remained composed. “At the beginning, my movement was quite good,” she said. “But when my opponent changed tactics in the third game, I was too hasty with crucial points. I calmed down in the last game to secure the victory.”
Third seed Wang Yidi overcame Romania’s Elizabeta Samara 3-1 (11-4, 10-12, 13-11, 11-2) and will face Austria’s Sofia Polcanova in the next round. Olympic champion Chen Meng delivered a confident 3-0 win (11-5, 11-7, 11-8) over Japan’s Miwa Harimoto. Second seed Wang Manyu defeated Cheng I-Ching from Chinese Taipei in straight sets (11-7, 12-10, 11-6).
As the inaugural WTT Champions Series event on the 2024 calendar, the tournament in Incheon has attracted the world’s elite players, competing for a prize pool of $300,000. The champions will also earn 1,000 ITTF world ranking points each, adding significant stakes to the competition.
Reference(s):
Chinese paddlers continue winning streak at WTT Champions Incheon
cgtn.com
