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2018 ITTF Challenge, Thailand Open

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Challenge Series

Upsets continue, Yang Heng-Wei centre stage

19 May 2018

Contrary to expectations, players who had been required to compete in the two day qualification tournament continued their progress in the third round of the Men’s Singles event at the 2018 ITTF Challenge Thailand Open in Bangkok on the late morning and early afternoon of Saturday 19th May.

However, the player to attract the attention was a seed, Chinese Taipei’s ice cool Yang Heng-Wei caused the biggest upset; the young man who had finished in fourth spot at the Nanjing 2014 Summer Youth Olympic Games when losing to Brazil’s Hugo Calderano, was centre stage.

Yang Heng-Wei who beat Mizuki Oikawa (Photo: Zhao Chunsheng)

by Ian Marshall, ITTF Publications Manager

The no.15 seed, he accounted for Japan’s Mizuki Oikawa, the no.7 seed (11-7, 11-6, 11-13, 11-8, 11-2) to reserve his place in the quarter-final stage.

Defeat for Japan but there was the reverse scenario as upsets continued; Kohei Sambe, the no.30 seed, beat Hung Tzu-Hsing, the no.12 seed (9-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-5, 11-3) to balance the books, whilst qualifier Hibiki Tazoe tipped the scales in favour of Japan by ousting Korea’s Cho Daeseong, the no.19 seed (8-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-9, 11-8).

The success recorded by Hibiki Tazoe means that four players who were required to compete in the two day qualification tournament have booked quarter-final places.

In contests where qualifiers met qualifiers; Hong Kong’s Su Zhi beat Korea’s Baek Hogyun (11-6, 11-4, 15-17, 11-9, 14-12), China’s Xu Ruifeng overcame Japan’s Hokuto Koriyama (11-7, 6-11, 11-4, 12-14, 11-6, 11-9) and by the very narrowest of margins Frenchman Bastien Rembert defeated India’s Manav Vikash Thakkar (11-3, 8-11, 11-8, 12-10, 9-11, 10-12, 13-11).

Surprise quarter-finalists but two notable names have stood firm; Kazakhstan’s Kirill Gerassimenko, the top seed and Japan’s Masatak Morizono, the no.3 seed. In the third round Kirill Gerassimenko beat Russian qualifier Fedor Kuzmin (11-6, 11-7, 5-11, 2-11, 11-9, 11-5); Masataka Morizono ousted colleague Takuya Jin, the no.24 seed (11-7, 11-8, 11-9, 11-6).

At the quarter-final stage Kirill Gerassimenko meets Su Zhi, Yang Heng-Wei opposes Xu Ruifeng; in the opposite half of the draw, Bastian Rembert stands between Japan and the final. He confronts Masataka Morizono;  Kohei Sambe plays Hibiki Tazoe.

The matches will be played later in the day.

Challenge Series 2018 Thailand Open Yang Heng-Wei

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