Site Products
HARIMOTO, Tomokazu

Men’s World Cup: Group Play

(by Steve Hopkins)

The group stage of the Dishang 2020 ITTF Men’s World Cup concluded on Friday.  Thirteen of the 21 elite players who qualified competed in groups, with the top 8 advancing (2 per group) to face the top 8 seeds.

There were four groups and the top seed in each group advanced. Two of the second seeds advanced as well, though unfortunately one of those not advancing was USA’s Kanak Jha.  The other unfortunate group round second seed was Quadri Aruna of Nigeria.

For Kanak, he began the day with a very tight match with top seeded Liam Pitchford.  Kanak won the first and third games, but found himself down 3-2.  He fought back to even the game score with a 12-10 win in the 6th game, but he fell short in the 7th game and lost 4-3.  He then had a short break and was back in competition with Taipei’s Chuang Chih-Yuan.  Kanak won the first game, but then lost three in a row.  Kanak again fought back to even the game score, but he lost the seventh game in heartbreaking fashion 14-12.

The list of advancing players is without any major surprises.  The lowest world ranking among them is Darko Jorgic (World No. 34).  Of course, the reward for advancing is the Main Draw, where 8 of the best players in the world await.

Chuang Chih-Yuan (who advanced from Kanak Jha’s second group) will face World No. 1 Fan Zhendong.  Liam Pitchford (the top finisher from Group 1) will face Dimitrij Ovtcharov.  Darko Jorgic (who upset Quadri Aruna) will now face Ma Long.  The other seeded players include 2019 World Cup finalist Tomokazu Harimoto, Mattias Falck, Hugo Calderano, Koki Niwa, and Lin Yun-Ju.

ITTF TV will be following the matches via livestream.  Tomorrow’s action in the Main Draw begins at 11a local time (10p Eastern this evening).

Check in at ButterflyOnline.com starting Thursday for updates on the progress of this event and other events.

Stay “In The Loop” with Butterfly professional table tennis equipment, table tennis news, table tennis technology, tournament results, and We Are Butterfly players, coaches, clubs and more.

Latest News

#1 Putting time pressure on the opponent with quick attacks

July 1, 2025
[Feature] [Special Feature] America’s star! Jha’s strong points #1 Putting time pressure on the opponent with quick attacks… Read More

Product Validation – Beginner Set up

July 1, 2025
(by: Bowmar Sports) In this Butterfly Product Validation, Brian Pace explain a fantastic Beginner Set-up is you are… Read More

Counter-Attack WITH Control – Harimoto Innerforce Super ALC + Dignics 05 + Dignics 05

June 30, 2025
(by Bowmar Sports) In the dynamic world of table tennis, power often takes the spotlight — but control… Read More

Center of Gravity in Your Stomach

June 30, 2025
WAIT FUNCTION: Serve short backspin or side backspin to Forehand, Robot plays long backspin push to Forehand, Forehand… Read More

Celebrating Excellence: Honored As Canada’s Table Tennis Coach Of The Year

June 30, 2025
(by Coach Raymond/Butterfly Americas) It is with immense pride and gratitude that I reflect on being named *Canada’s… Read More

WTTC 2025 (Part 3): A Gathering of Global Table Tennis Passion – Report from the Butterfly Booth in Doha

June 30, 2025
(by Buterfly Global) In the final installment of our WTTC 2025 series, we share a report from the… Read More

WTTC 2025 (Part 2): Expanding the Circle of Social Contribution Through Table Tennis – Messages Embodied in T-Shirts for the ITTF Foundation

June 30, 2025
(By Butterfly Global) In the second installment of our WTTC 2025 series, we highlight the initiatives carried out… Read More

Smarter Now Doesn’t Mean You Were Dumb Before

June 30, 2025
(By Larry Hodges) This is one of those tips where the title, by itself, should give you a… Read More
View All News

Get the latest from Butterfly

Stay “In The Loop” with Butterfly professional table tennis equipment, table tennis news, table tennis technology, tournament results, and We Are Butterfly players, coaches, clubs and more.