(by Steve Hopkins, photo WTT)
TeamUSA rolled through the opening knock-out round in the Women’s Team event at the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals London. TeamUSA defeated India 3-1 on Tuesday and they now move on to face Ukraine in the Round of 16.
In Tuesday’s match, Sally Moyland started strong with a 3-0 win over Yashaswini Ghorpade (World No. 61). Then India’s team anchor, Manika Batra, topped USA’s Jessica Reyes Lai 3-1. Lily Zhang then logged her own 3-0 win over Diya Chitale to give the US a 2-1 advantage. Sally Moyland then shut the door with a 3-1 win over Batra (World No. 48). A big win for TeamUSA, and two big wins for Moyland.
This tournament has been a big success for the Americans thus far. In group play, they had a pair of 3-0 wins over Nigeria and Malaysia, and a 3-1 win over Italy. Cumulatively, the squad is now 4-0. Lily Zhang and Sally Moyland are each undefeated at 5-0.
The next test is big – Ukraine is another talented squad with some savvy veterans to contend with. The winner of Ukraine and USA will face Japan in the Quarterfinals. The other teams that have already advanced include China and Korea Republic (who will face each other), and Hong Kong. TeamUSA is looking to take its next step towards joining those elite teams when they play later today.
Visit ButterflyOnline.com for the latest table tennis news and results.
