The World Table Tennis (WTT) Europe Smash in Malmo is heating up, with three standout players from the Chinese mainland charging into the women's singles Round of 16. Sun Yingsha, top-seeded and known for her lightning-fast footwork, kicked off the day with a convincing 3-1 win over French veteran Jia Nan Yuan.
After an 11-2 opening game blitz, Sun faced a tougher challenge in the second, falling 6-11 to Yuan's crafty high-toss serves. A mid-match chat with her coach helped refocus her strategy, and she seized the next two games 11-5, 11-6 to seal her spot. Next on her path is Japan's 13th seed Hina Hayata.
Chen Xingtong also made waves, overturning 21-year-old Prithika Pavade of France in four games. Pavade grabbed the first 11-8, but Chen rallied with a swift 3-1 comeback, punctuated by four straight points to close out a nail-biting 12-10 in Game 4. Germany's Sabine Winter awaits in Round 16.
Chen Yi completed the trio's singles success, cruising to a 3-0 win against South Korea's Joo Cheon-hui. The contests were tight, but Chen converted key points when it mattered most. She'll take on Brazil's Bruna Takahashi next.
Chinese mainland players also shone in doubles. Sun Yingsha and Wang Manyu dropped just one game en route to the women's doubles quarterfinals, dismissing Germany's Xiaona Shan and Ng Wing Lam of the Hong Kong SAR 11-8, 11-5, 11-5. They'll face Hana Matelova and Barbora Balazova in the last eight.
In mixed doubles, Lin Shidong and Kuai Man claimed a convincing straight-games win over Chinese Taipei's Lin Yun-Ju and Cheng I-Ching (11-4, 11-3, 13-11). Their semifinal clash is set against Romania's Eduard Ionescu and Bernadette Szocs.
With momentum on their side, the Chinese mainland athletes are poised to light up the next stages of Malmo's biggest table tennis showdown.
Reference(s):
Chinese players advance to round of 16 in Sweden at WTT Europe Smash
cgtn.com
