(BY MATT HETHERINGTON)
Former Champion on Track shooting for Final Table Places

Triumph in 2014 for Tao Wenzhang as he claimed the Men’s Singles title at the US Open in Grand Rapids, Michigan, now he aims to repeat the feat in 2017. Three years have passed since that moment of glory but the US-based player from Shandong Luneng club in China hasn’t let go of his goals to become the most dominant player in the country. The day began with the Round of 16 in the Men’s Singles event as the players move ever closer to the Final Table Celebration, taking place at The Foundry inside the SLS Casino and Hotel this Thursday evening. Two players will face off in each of the Men’s and Women’s Singles finals and today the male players in the draw ground down to the final four.

Tao would go up against a pair of 4-time Olympic table tennis players, first facing off with France’s Damien Eloi. Eloi had upset Tomislav Pucar, the top seed and world ranked 84th player from Croatia, in a monstrous seven game duel yesterday on center court. It would be an intense duel between the two, not without its fair share of drama, but both players were able to move past some initial disruptions and engage in another down-to-the-wire match.

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