Wang Chuqin, the world’s No. 1 men’s singles table tennis player from the Chinese mainland, ushered in the Year of the Snake with an impressive 3-0 victory over Japan’s Yukiya Uda in the first round of the World Table Tennis (WTT) Singapore Smash on Sunday.
The match started on a challenging note for Wang as Uda took an early lead of 9-6. However, Wang demonstrated his resilience by leveling the score at 9-9 before securing the first game with two consecutive points. The second game saw Wang dominate, building an early lead and winning the frame 11-5 with ease.
In the final game, the competition intensified as Uda fought back, keeping the score tight until Wang delivered a powerful smash to clinch the match 3-0. Moving forward, Wang will face Singaporean wild-card Koen Pang in the next round.
The Chinese mainland continued its strong performance with two more players advancing in the men’s singles event. Qualifier Huang Youzheng triumphed over Iran’s Noshad Alamian with scores of 14-12, 12-10, 11-4 and is set to compete against Germany’s No. 8 seed Patrick Franziska. Additionally, Chen Yuanyu defeated Paraguay’s Marcelo Aguirre 11-7, 11-7, 2-11, 11-6, positioning himself to challenge South Korea’s 12th seed Jang Woo-jin in the upcoming round.
On the women’s side, Chinese mainland’s No. 4 seed Chen Xingtong easily overcame Lam Yee Lok of Hong Kong with scores of 11-3, 11-7, 11-3. Second-seeded Wang Manyu secured her place in the next round by defeating Egypt’s Dina Meshref 11-8, 11-7, 11-9. Additionally, No. 15 seed Kuai Man edged out Portugal’s Fu Yu 11-6, 11-5, 7-11, 11-7 to advance.
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Wang Chuqin begins Year of the Snake with win at WTT Singapore Smash
cgtn.com
