(by Steve Hopkins)
In an event full of upsets, it was World No. 7 Liang Jingkun that came out on top. When festivities kicked off at the WTT Contender event in Goa, there were 10 players in the current ITTF Top 20, and that included World No. 1 Fan Zhendong, World No. 4 Harimoto, World No. 6 Moregard, Jinkun at No. 7, Lin Yun-Ju at No.8, Euro 16 Champion Darko Jorgic, European Champion Dang Qiu, former Top 4 player Lin Gaoyuan, Patrick Franziska, and Jang Woojin.
The upsets started early with Fan Zhendong losing in the second round to Korean Cho Daeseong. Moregard fell victim to France’s 16 year old penholder, Felix Lebrun – with Lebrun winning 3-1 in the Round of 16. Harimoto fell in an upset as well, but he advanced all the way to the Semifinals before losing in a moderate upset to eventual winner Liang Jingkun 3-1 (No. 7 over No. 4).
The top half of the draw was all about the kids (and perhaps the future) as 17 year old Chinese player Lin Shidong continued his path up the Rankings. He is currently No. 24, but managed to upset World No. 8 Lin Yun-Ju this week on his way to an appearance in the Final. Shidong faced off against 16 year old Lebrun in the Semifinals. Lebrun had defeated Moregard and Woojin in consecutive matches, but fell 0-3 to Shidong. Both “kids” had a great tournament.
The bottom half of the draw had fewer upsets. Darko Jorgic fell early, but the other three highest seeds made it through to face each other. Lian Jingkun defeated Lin Gaoyuan 3-1 in their Quarterfinal matchup, and then topped Harimoto by the same 3-1 score. And, in the Final, Jingkun continued his run with a 4-2 victory over Shidong: (11-6, 9-11, 10-12, 12-10, 12-10, 11-9).
Visit ButterflyOnline.com for the latest table tennis news and results.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULGR5h9sHNU
