by Simon Daish

Chinese Taipei’s Cheng I-Ching went into the 2016 Austrian Open as one of the favourites for the title having enjoyed successful campaigns at Rio 2016 and the Seamaster 2016 Women’s World Cup, but she couldn’t replicate that form in Linz as Japanese player Yui Hamamoto pulled off a fantastic win to knock Cheng out of the category.

The match was level following the conclusion of the second game, but before long Hamamoto found herself 3-1 ahead after strong performances in games three and four to build up more pressure on her opponent’s shoulders.

Cheng was able to extend the match just a little longer with her success in the fifth end, however, Hamamoto had her eyes on the prize and her capture of game six saw the Japanese competitor get over the finish line with a 4-2 victory.

Elsewhere in the top half of the Women’s Singles draw Miyu Maeda (JPN) came to within a game of the next round, but a terrific display from Suthasini Sawettabut saw the Thai player progress instead after claiming four consecutive ends to seal the comeback win (6-11, 9-11, 9-11, 13-11, 11-6, 14-12, 12-10).

23rd seed Choi Hyojoo of Korea Republic brought Misaki Morizono’s campaign to an end with a seventh game victory and another Korean contestant Suh Hyowon reached the quarter-finals with ease, seeing off Sakura Mori without dropping a game.

Latest Results

Saturday 12th November: Women’s Singles – Main Draw