The full lineup for Stage 3 at ITTF Mixed Team World Cup Chengdu 2024 presented by CHINA TELECOM is complete, with Romania and Hong Kong, China locking up the final two spots on a dramatic evening under the lights at Sichuan Gymnasium.
In a hugely important clash between Hong Kong, China and Japan, each individual match was decided by a one-game margin with very little separating the teams on the night.
Ng Wing Lam and Yiu Kwan To got the ball rolling for Hong Kong, China, overturning an early deficit to beat Kaho Akae and Keishi Hagihara (6-11, 11-6, 11-9), before Doo Hoi Kem built on that momentum, enjoying the better of a 2-1 showdown against Rin Mende (11-5, 12-10, 11-13).
Japan would respond, prevailing 2-1 in both the Men’s Singles and Women’s Doubles encounters to force a deciding Men’s Doubles clash. Yuta Tanaka and Keishi Hagihara brought the heat, fighting tooth and nail to force a 15th game, but the evening would belong to Hong Kong, China as Wong Chun Ting and Yiu Kwan To dug deep (11-7, 10-12, 11-9) to close out a nail-biting 8-7 victory.
“Our whole team, both players and coaches, our physical strength is a little bit down. It was the cheering of the crowd in the stadium, and our desire to play, that supported us on the court all the time. We really did not expect that we could get into the top four. It is really a super big surprise. We have two tough matches waiting for us tomorrow, so we will definitely play our best.”Doo Hoi Kem
Despite losing out to China by an 8-0 scoreline, Romania is the other team to progress to Stage 3 courtesy of Japan’s defeat at the hands of Hong Kong, China.
Kuai Man and Lin Shidong put China on the scoreboard early on, claiming all three games in their Mixed Doubles showdown against Adina Diaconu and Andrei Istrate (11-6, 11-5, 11-3). Not long after, Wang Manyu extended China’s advantage to 6-0 with a decisive victory over Andreea Dragoman (15-13, 11-6, 11-1), and it was Liang Jingkun who brought the contest to a close, dispatching Darius Movileanu (11-7, 11-4).
In the evening’s other action, Korea Republic chalked up its fourth win on the bounce, proving too strong for Germany in a match that finished 8-5, while France ended its week on a positive note, seeing off USA 8-6.
