(by Steve Hopkins)
Early in the week it was announced that Sora Matsushima was the new World No. 1, and today he closed the week with an exclamation point – a victory at the China Smash in Beijing. In his Semifinal match on Sunday, Matsushima eliminated the last remaining Chinese player – a tight 4-2 win. And then, in the Final, Matsushima was down 2-3 but fought through to win the last two games over Lin Yun-Ju to claim the title.
Lin Yun-Ju also had a great showing, despite falling just short in the Final. Yun-Ju began the main draw with three straight 3-2 wins, pushed to the limit with Wong Chun Ting, Huang Youzheng, and Oh Junsung but coming out on top in all three matches. He then defeated Truls Moregard 4-0 in the Quarters and Hugo Calderano 4-3 in the Semifinals.
The 2000 points awarded to the winner should give Matsushima a solid lead in the Rankings. Moregard is also likely to move up a spot, causing Wang Chuqin to drop another position. Most of the rest of the players should stay about where they are at the top of the rankings.
Wang Manyu and Sun Yingsha swapped places a week ago atop the Women’s rankings. Yingsha’s time on top likely ended today as Wang Manyu swept her way through this event to claim the title (4-0 over Hitomi Sato) as well as the 2000 points for the winner. Manyu currently trails first place by only 10 ranking points, and Sun Yingsha’s early upset exit means Manyu should early about 1900 “extra” points in the spread between them.
The Men’s Doubles title went to Lim Jonghoon and Oh Junsung over the Lebrun brothers. The Women’s Doubles title went to Wang Manyu and Kuai Man over Miwa Harimoto and Hina Hayata. Mixed Doubles went to Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin.
The tour next turns its eyes to France as the WTT Champions Montpellier will begin action on October 27.
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