(by Steve Hopkins)
All of the World’s Top 10 ranked men (and 8 of the Women’s Top 10) headline a massive $800,000 prize money event this week in Macao. Thirty two men and 32 women qualified to compete in the singles competitions. The first round is underway, and Kanak Jha is one of the early winners. USA’s top player defeated Kristian Karlsson 3-0 in the Round of 32. Karlsson is World No. 18 – an impressive win for the young American. Next up for Kanak Jha is likely World No. 1 Fan Zhendong.
Other early winners include Alex Lebrun who topped Jang Woojin, Liang Jingkun who survived a tight 3-2 match with Lin Gaoyuan, Truls Moregard, Tomislav Pucar, Yang Wang, Wang Chuqin, Dang Qiu, and Ma Long.
The women’s event often features fewer upsets. Thus far, eight women have advanced. Of the eight, three Chinese players, two Japanese players, Szocs, Cheng-I-Ching, and Hana Matelova. Puerto Rico’s Adriana Diaz fell to Chen Xingtong 3-0 in her opening match. USA’s Lily Zhang is set to play in a few hours.
Lots of quality table tennis on tap all week long.
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