by Ian Marshall, ITTF Publications Manager

It is one of the anomalies of sport; logic suggests that the left handed Chen Chien-An in partnership with the right handed Chuang Chih-Yuan is a quite ideal combination but on the ITTF World Tour, as a pair not only have they never won a title, they have never reached a final.

Defeat for Chen Chien-An and Chuang Chih-Yuan but for Chinese Taipei there was more than consolation. Liao Cheng-Ting and Lin Yun-Ju accounted for Germany’s Ruwen Filus and Ricardo Walther, the no.6 seeds and three times ITTF World Tour Men’s Doubles silver medallists. Just as their colleagues lost in four games, so the new generation duo won in four games (11-5, 6-11, 11-6, 11-3).

Mixed fortunes for Chinese Taipei, not for Japan and most pertinently not for Hong Kong; for the hosts, Ho Kwan Kit and Wong Chun Ting, the no.3 seeds, beat Zhou Kai and Zhu Linfeng (11-6, 13-11, 10-12, 11-8) thus ending the hopes of China. Similarly, Lam Sui Hang and Ng Pak Nam, the no.8 seeds, halted the progress of the European partnership formed by Belgium’s Robin Devos and Finland’s Bendek Olah (12-10, 11-7, 12-14, 11-6).

Meanwhile for Japan, Jin Ueda and Maharu Yoshimura, the no.2 seeds, accounted for the pairing of Ukraine’s Kou Lei and Belgium’s Cédric Nuytinck (11-7, 11-6, 11-4); Masataka Morizono and Yuya Oshima, the no.5 seeds, eventually overcame Iran’s Nina Alamian and Noshad Alamiyan by the skin of their teeth. They succeeded by the very minimal margin (11-4, 6-11, 8-11, 11-9, 11-9).

Success as status advised; it was the same for Korea’s Jeoung Youngsik and Lee Sangsu, the top seeds, as it was for the combination of Germany’s Patrick Franziska and Denmark’s Jonathan Groth, the no.4 seeds. Jeoung Youngsik and Lee Sangsu beat Austria’s Robert Gardos and Daniel Habesohn (11-9, 9-11, 15-13, 11-8); Patrick Franziska and Jonathan Groth accounted for India’s Harmeet Desai and Sanil Shetty (11-5, 11-9, 9-11, 11-3).

At the quarter-final stage Jeoung Youngsik and Lee Sangsu meet Masataka Morizono and Yuya Oshima, Lam Siu Hang and Ng Pak Nam oppose Patrick Franziska and Jonathan Groth (11-5, 11-9, 9-11, 11-3). In the lower half of the draw it is Ho Kwan Kit and Wong Chun Ting in opposition to Liao Cheng-Ting and Lin Yun-Ju, Pär Gerell and Jon Persson versus Jin Ueda and Maharu Yoshimura.

The quarter-final and semi-final contests will be played on Friday 25th May.