Asian Table Tennis Championships: Hong Kong’s women storm into semi-finals, while China dominate men’s draw
- China’s men sweep aside Hong Kong in round of 16, rack up fourth 3-0 win of tournament
- Hong Kong’s women see off Kazakhstan 3-1 to grab spot in last four in Pyeongchang
China’s men swept into the quarter-finals of the ITTF Asian Table Tennis Championships on Monday, brushing aside Hong Kong in the round of 16.
Having already dispatched Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Pakistan in the group stage, the Ma Long-led side had little trouble against Hong Kong, and racked up their fourth 3-0 win of the tournament.
Hong Kong came into the encounter on the back of 3-0 victories against Mongolia and Sri Lanka, but could not win a game against their more illustrious opponents. They next face Thailand in the ninth place play-off, while China go up against Japan in the quarter-finals.
China topped both men’s and women’s groups on Sunday. The women’s team cruised past Malaysia, Chinese Taipei and Iran, before easing past Singapore in the quarter-finals on Monday.
That same day, the Hong Kong women’s team tore past Kazakhstan 3-1, securing a spot in the semi-finals.
There is plenty at stake at the championships, which finish on September 10 in Pyeongchang, South Korea, not least the seven gold medals up for grabs in men’s and women’s singles, doubles, team and mixed doubles.
The winners of the men’s and women’s teams, as well as the mixed doubles, secure a spot at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
China’s victory over Hong Kong gained a lot of attention, with the topic trending on China’s Twitter-like platform Weibo, as fans shared the results.
