Top seed Sun Yingsha of China continues her march toward the women’s singles title at the World Table Tennis (WTT) China Smash in Beijing. On Thursday, she secured a spot in the quarterfinals with a commanding victory over compatriot Liu Weishan.
‘We are very familiar with each other and we both played with good form,’ Sun remarked after her 11-4, 11-5, 4-11, 11-2 win. ‘Liu Weishan has shown her style too. As the competition goes on, the matches will be closer. I will do my best in every battle.’
Sun will face sixth seed Mima Ito of Japan in the last eight. Ito advanced after a hard-fought five-game match against Kim Na-yeong, winning 11-7, 6-11, 6-11, 11-7, 11-9.
Chinese qualifier Fan Siqi continued her impressive run, defeating Sakura Mori of Japan 11-6, 14-12, 11-5. She will next challenge No. 7 seed Cheng I-Ching of Chinese Taipei, who overcame home qualifier Wang Xiaotong 11-13, 11-7, 11-8, 11-8.
Fourth-seeded Chen Xingtong of China dispatched compatriot Chen Yi in straight games 11-7, 11-9, 11-3, setting up a quarterfinal clash with Suh Hyo-won of the Republic of Korea.
Wildcard player He Zhuojia, one of the dark horses of the tournament, advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating home wildcard Zong Geman 11-8, 11-9, 11-7. She will face No. 2 seed Wang Manyu in an all-China showdown. Wang secured her spot by sweeping Qin Yuxuan 11-9, 11-5, 11-4.
With several top Chinese players advancing, the stage is set for thrilling encounters in the quarterfinals as they vie for the prestigious title on home soil.
Reference(s):
Sun Yingsha progresses toward women's singles title at WTT China Smash
cgtn.com
