by Ian Marshall, Editor
After experiencing defeats the previous day at the hands of Wang Manyu (11-5, 11-6, 8-11, 7-11, 11-2) and Sun Yingsha (11-8, 11-8, 12-10); in her opening match on the third day of action, by the narrowest of five game margins, Ding Ning ended the unbeaten record of Chen Meng (12-14, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6, 11-9).
“I tried my best. To win or to lose is normal. I just want to play well the next matches. I think I was a bit conservative in the deciding game. I wanted to take control of the match; my returns were too high. Everyone is of a similar level in this internal qualification. I just want to test what I have practised in the training sessions.” Chen Meng
A confidence building win, in her one further contest of the day Ding Ning was in the fast lane; she beat Liu Shiwen in three straight games (11-6, 11-8, 11-4); notably for Liu Shiwen it was her second defeat of the day. Somewhat surprisingly earlier she had suffered at the hands of Sun Mingyang (11-9, 4-11, 11-5, 12-10).
“I did not give up even though I experienced two defeats yesterday; this kind of round robin playing system requires you to change the mindset very quickly. I am happy that I won both of my matches today.” Ding Ning
Similarly, in her one further contest, Chen Meng spared no charity; she accounted for Wang Yidi in some style (11-5, 11-5, 11-7).
Impressive from Ding Ning and Chen Meng; it was the same from Fan Zhendong. After overcoming Xu Chenhao (11-8, 14-12, 11-2) and Yu Ziyang (11-6, 11-7, 11-2), in the battle of the hitherto unbeaten, he overcame Liang Jungkun (11-4, 11-9, 11-6).
“The match against Liang Jingkun was really important for both of us. Whoever won this match made one more step towards their goal; thanks to all the fans. We know everything about each other expect our weight! We are very familiar with each other. I made full preparation today.” Fan Zhendong
Earlier in the day, Liang Jingkun had beaten Lin Gaoyuan by the minimal two point margin in the decider (12-10, 8-11, 14-12, 9-11, 11-9), before in a further five games encounter, overcoming Zhao Zihao (11-5, 7-11, 12-10, 4-11, 11-6).
Performances to savour but if there was one player who caught the eye it was 20 year old Xue Fei, the winner of the boys’ singles title at the 2017 World Junior Championships in Riva del Garda. He lost to Xu Chenhao by the minimal two point margin (8-11, 13-11, 9-11, 15-13, 12-10) but accounted for both Zhou Kai (13-11, 11-9, 8-11, 4-11, 11-8) and Yu Ziyang (11-7, 11-8, 11-5).
The end result is that he shares third place alongside Yan An, Lin Gaoyuan, Yu Ziyang and fellow pen-holder, Xu Xin.
Play in Shenzhen concludes on Sunday 3rd March.
Results
2019 Marvellous 12: Results – Men – Thursday 28th February
2019 Marvellous 12: Results – Men – Friday 1st March
2019 Marvellous 12: Results – Men – Saturday 2nd March
2019 Marvellous 12: Results – Women – Thursday 28th February
2019 Marvellous 12: Results – Women – Friday 1st March
2019 Marvellous 12: Results – Women – Saturday 2nd March
Standings
2019 Marvellous 12: Standings – Men – Thursday 28th February
2019 Marvellous 12: Standings – Men – Friday 1st March
2019 Marvellous 12: Standings – Men – Saturday 2nd March
2019 Marvellous 12: Standings – Women – Thursday 28th February
2019 Marvellous 12: Standings – Women – Friday 1st March
2019 Marvellous 12: Standings – Women – Saturday 2nd March
Forthcoming Matches – Men
2019 Marvellous 12: Order of Play – Men – Sunday 3rd March
Forthcoming Matches – Women
2019 Marvellous 12: Order of Play – Women – Sunday 3rd March
Quotes of the Day
2019 Marvellous 12: Quotes of the day – Thursday 28th February
2019 Marvellous 12: Quotes of the day – Friday 1st March
2019 Marvellous 12: Quotes of the day – Saturday 2nd March
