The world’s top two players, Fan Zhendong and Ma Long eased past their rivals 3-0. Slovenian star Darko Jorgic looked for a win but fell 11-6, 7-11, 11-7, 11-9 to Wang Chuqin as his side suffered their first defeat in Group 1.
“Actually, I did not play well today and wasted some opportunities, but my team encouraged me a lot, and I did learn from my rivals’ challenge,” Wang said after beating Slovenian top-seed Jorgic.
Singapore defeated Chinese Taipei to secure their first win in Chengdu, while Japan clinched a 3-1 win over Hong Kong-China, reports Xinhua.
In the women’s section, China’s Sun Yingsha swept American Lily Zhang 14-12, 11-3, 11-8, before Chen Xingtong staged a strong comeback after losing the first set, beating Jalli Sarah 9-11, 11-2, 11-5, 11-4.
“I’m satisfied with my performance today. As the game goes on, I’m getting my touch,” Sun said.
“This was my first match, and I was a little nervous. I adjusted myself as soon as possible after losing the first set, which was very important,” said Chen.
Tokyo Olympic champion Chen Meng overpowered the 14-year-old Yishiuan Lin in straight-set 11-6, 11-2, 11-5 to secure another win for the hosts.
Chen gave the thumbs up to Lin after the match. “I can see that Lin is young, and I did not know her so much before, but I can feel through the match that she had a good touch and feeling today.”
Sixth seed Romania and seventh seed Chinese Taipei fell to Portugal and Sweden 3-2 respectively. Germany locked up a 3-0 win over the Czech Republic and finished the round robin on top of Group 5, while Hong Kong of China pulled off an impressive 3-0 win over Brazil, remaining at the top of Group 3.
–IANS
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