Leading names advance
Men’s Singles: Round Two
Slovakia’s Lubomir Pistej, Germany’s Ruwen Filus and Brazil’s Eric Jouti, the leading names to reach round two, all enjoyed second round wins.
Lubomir Pistej, the no.6 seed, beat Hong Kong’s Lam Siu Hang, the no.22 seed (11-5, 11-7, 12-10, 9-11, 11-9), Ruwen Filus overcame Frenchman, Enzo Angles, the no.30 seed (11-6, 7-11, 7-11, 11-7, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7). Hard fought wins, it was very much the same for Eric Jouti, the no.10 seed; he ended the hopes of Indian qualifier Manav Vikash Thakkar (11-8, 11-8, 5-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-6).
Eric Jouti beat Manav Vikash Thakkar to book his third round place (Photo: Rémy Gros)
Good form maintained
Men’s Singles: Round Two
Qualifiers Japan’s Takuya Jin, Russia’s Vladimir Sidorenko and Croatia’s Wei Shihao all recorded second round wins.
Takuya Jin beat Chinese Taipei’s Peng Wang-Wei, the no.28 seed (11-5, 11-3, 11-6, 11-7); in a rather more exacting contest Wei Shihao overcame Sweden’s Truls Moregard, likewise a qualifier (11-8, 11-2, 7-11, 16-14, 11-9). Meanwhile, in a much more demanding encounter, Vladimir Sidorenko defeated colleague Viachaslev Burov (7-11, 11-8, 7-11, 11-4, 4-11, 11-9, 11-8).
Masaki Yoshida causes major upset
Men’s Singles: Round Two
Speed a key to his success, Japan’s Masaki Yoshida caused a major second round upset; the no.24 seed, he resisted a brave recovery by Brazil’s Gustavo Tsuboi, the no.3 seed, to emerge successful by the very narrowest of margins (11-7, 11-7, 11-6, 10-12, 8-11, 7-11, 13-11).
Defeat for Gustavo Tsuboi but not for the other prominent names who in the top half of the draw had progressed to round two, for them it was success. Austria’s Daniel Habesohn, the top seed, also caused Brazil heartaches by beating Vitor Ishiy, the no.25 seed (17-15, 5-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-3). Meanwhile, Croatia’s Tomislav Pucar, the no.8 seed, ousted Hong Kong’s Li Hon Ming, the no.32 seed (11-2, 10-12, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6, 11-7).
French qualifiers continue to progress
Men’s Singles: Round Two
Required to qualify, Frenchmen Andrea Landrieu and Stéphane Ouaiche both emerged successful in round two.
Facing fellow qualifiers, Andrea Landrieu beat Argentina’s Gaston Alto (9-11, 11-2, 12-10, 8-11, 11-7, 11-5); Stéphane Ouaiche accounted for Moldiova’s Andrei Putuntica (19-17, 11-8, 14-12, 9-11, 10-12, 9-11, 11-4). Alas for a third French qualifier it was defeat, Abdel-Kader Salifou was beaten by Poland’s Marek Badowski, the no.29 seed (10-12, 11-9, 11-7, 11-8, 11-7).
Defence prevails
Women’s Singles: Round Two
Yumeno Soma, the no.31 seed, caused the biggest upset as play progressed in the lower half of the draw; the 16 year old used her backspin skills to good effect to beat Hong Kong’s Ng Wing Nam, the 7 seed (11-2, 11-5, 11-1, 11-8).
Success one promising Japanese teenager, for two more in the guise of 13 year old Haruna Ojio and 14 years of age Miyuu Kihara, the no.17 seed, it was not unexpected defeat. Miyuu Kihara lost to Hong’s Minnie Soo Wai Yam, the no.3 seed (16-18, 11-4, 6-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-8); Haruna Ojio suffered at the hands the no.2 seed, Hungary’s Georgina Pota (11-5, 11-5, 11-5, 11-6).
Qualifiers progress
Women’s Singles: Round Two
Required to qualify, Russia’s Olga Vorobeva and Anastasia Kolish alongside Poland’s Natalia Bajor all recorded second round wins.
Olga Vorobeva beat Luxembourg’s Sarah de Nutte, the no.14 seed (4-11, 9-11, 16-14, 11-5, 11-5, 11-8), Anastasia Kolish overcame Austria’s Amelie Solja, the no.11 seed (9-11, 8-11, 11-5, 11-9, 2-11, 11-9, 11-7); similarly, Natalia Bajor ended the hopes of Pauline Chasselin of France, the no.27 seed (11-9, 11-13, 5-11, 11-6, 14-12, 11-7).
Shin Yubin shines
Women’s Singles: Round Two
Korea Republic’s Shin Yubin emerged the player to attract the attention as the second round commenced; the 15 year old accounted for Wu Yue of the United States, the no.5 seed (11-7, 11-9, 11-5, 11-13, 11-9) to cause the one upset in the upper half of the draw.
Otherwise it was success as anticipated. Notably, Puerto Rico’s Adriana Diaz, the top seed, beat Romania’s Irina Ciobanu, the no.28 seed (14-12, 9-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-7). Japan’s Miyu Nagasaki, the no.3 seed, accounted for Hungarian qualifier, Orsolya Feher (11-2, 11-5, 11-4, 13-11). Similarly, Ukraine’s Margaryta Pesotska, the no.6 seed, ended the hopes of Hong Kong’s Li Ching Wan (11-9, 11-5, 12-10, 11-3), like Orsolya Feher a qualifier.
Chinese Taipei duo ends Slovenian hopes
Men’s Doubles: Round One
An imposing performance, Huang Chien-Tu and Wang Tai-Wei beat Tilen Cvetko and Peter Hribar, the no.8 seeds (11-1, 11-8, 11-2) to end Slovenia hopes.
It was the one upset in the lower half of the draw; notably Poland’s Marek Badowski and Patryk Zatowka, the no.2 seeds, beat Japan’s Hibik Tazoe and Kenta Tazoe (11-7, 9-11, 11-4, 11-8); Hungary’s Nandor Ecseki and Bence Majoros, the no.3 seeds, ended the hopes of the combination formed by Aidos Kenzhigulov and David Sedaroglu (11-3, 11-7, 12-10).
Brazilians fly Latin American flag
Men’s Doubles: Round One
Top seeds, Brazil’s Eric Jouti and Gustavo Tsuboi, the top seeds, duly negotiated the opening hurdle; they beat Chinese Taipei’s Feng Yi-Hsin and Hung Tzu-Hsiang (11-7, 11-7, 11-8); however, for their Latin American colleagues there were defeats.
Puerto Rico’s Brian Afanador and Daniel Gonzalez, the no.7 seeds, lost to Serbia’s Dimitrije Levajac and Zsolt Peto (11-13, 11-9, 12-10, 8-11, 11-7); Paraguay’s Marcelo Aguirre in partnership with Spain’s Carlos Caballero, the no.6 seeds, experienced defeat against Iran’s Amin Ahmadian and Miad Lotfijanabadi (11-9, 11-5, 12-10).
Host nation disappointment
Women’s Doubles: Round One
Slovenia’s Katarina Strazar and Aleksandra Vovk, the no.8 seeds, experienced an opening round defeat at the hands of Russia’s Valeria Shcherbatykh and Mariia Tailakova (11-8, 11-6, 11-9).
Likewise, also in the lower half of the draw, Luxembourg’s Sarah De Nutte and Danielle Konsbruck, the no.7 seeds, suffered at the hands of the combination formed by Norway’s Ma Wenting and Poland’s Magdalena Sikorska (11-6, 9-11, 9-11, 11-4, 13-11).
Hong Kong success
Women’s Doubles: Round One
Ng Wing Nam and Minnie Soo Wai Yam, the top seeds emerged successful as anticipated; they beat the French partnership of Oceane Guisnel and Marie Migot (8-11, 11-1, 11-9, 11-2).
However, it was their colleagues who attracted the eye; qualifiers Liu Qi and Mak Tze Wing upset the order of merit; they beat Wu Yue and Lily Zhang, the no.3 seeds (11-7, 11-9, 11-5).
Andreas Levenko survives
Under 21 Men’s Singles: Round Three
Austria’s Andreas Levenko, the top seed, beat Hong Kong’s Kwan Man Ho, the no.15 seed (5-11, 11-6, 12-14, 11-3, 12-10) but of the top 10 names, he was the only one to book a quarter-final place.
In the third round, Russia’s Vladimir Sidorenko, the no.3 seed, lost to Frenchman, Bastien Rembert, the no.11 seed (11-4, 11-8, 11-2), England’s Tom Jarvis, the no.6 seed, suffered at the hands of Japan’s Shogo Tahara, the no.46 seed (3-11, 5-11, 11-8, 12-10, 11-6); India’s Jeet Chandra, the no.8 seed, was beaten by Chinese Taipei’s Feng Yi-Hsin (11-9, 11-9, 11-9).
Le de Nodrest on course
Under 21 Men’s Singles: Round Three
Winner last week in Belgrade, Frenchman, Leo de Nodrest kept hopes alive of a repeat success in Otocec; the no.19 seed, he reserved his last eight place courtesy of success in opposition to Belgium’s Laurens Devos, the no.13 seed (9-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-7).
Impressive from Leo de Nodrest, at the same time it was equally imposing from Iran’s Amin Ahmadian. The no.42 seed, he ousted Romania’s Alexandru Manole, the no.27 seed (9-11, 11-6, 11-9, 11-5).
Top seeds book quarter-final places
Under 21 Women’s Singles: Round Three
Japan’s Miyu Nagasaki and Yumeno Soma, the respective top two seeds both booked quarter-final places.
In the third round Miyu Nagasaki beat Belgium’s Margo Degraef, the no.30 seed (11-9, 11-9, 11-4), Yumeno Soma accounted for Croatia’s Clara Cakol, the no.37 seed (11-3, 11-8, 11-4).
Catching the eye
Under 21 Women’s Singles: Round Three
Russia’s Anastasia Kolish and Chinese Taipei’s Tsai Yu-Chin emerged the players to attract the attention as the third round progressed.
Anastasia Kolish, the no.26 seed, overcame Chinese Taipei’s Su Pei-Ling, the no.24 seed (11-9, 11-9, 11-5); Tsai Yu-Chin, the no.35 seed, ended the hopes of Hungary’s Orsolya Feher, the no.23 seed (11-8, 12-10, 11-8).
Wei Shihao causes biggest upset to date
Men’s Singles: Round One
Safely through the qualification tournament, Croatia’s Wei Shihao caused the biggest upset so far recorded in Otocec.
In the opening round, he beat Germany’s Ricardo Walther, the no.2 seed and winner on the ITTF World Tour in Croatia in 2014: Wei Shihao prevailed in seven games (11-7, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6, 5-11, 6-11, 11-5)
Bright young men
Men’s Singles: Round One
Chile’s 22 year old Juan Lamadrid and Sweden’s 17 years of age Truls Moregard underlined the fact that in the next decade they will be very much at the foreront of their country’s efforts on the international scene.
In the opening round Juan Lamadrid beat Hungary’s Nandor Ecseki, the no.21 seed (7-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-8, 11-7); Truls Moregard overcame Austria’s Andreas Levenko, the no.20 seed (9-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-7, 11-6).
More Russian success
Men’s Singles: Round One
Impressive from Sadi Ismailov, soon after it was the very same from colleagues Viachaslev Burov and Vladimir Sidorenko.
Viachaslev Burov beat Croatia’s Frane Kojic, the no.18 seed (8-11, 11-7, 15-13, 11-7, 15-13), Vladimir Sidorenko ousted Paraguay’s Marcelo Aguirre, the no.13 seed (11-8, 11-7, 11-9, 8-11, 9-11, 12-10).
Sadi Ismailov beats Omar Assar
Men’s Singles: Round One
Powerful, left handed; safely through the qualification stage, Russia’s Sadi Ismailov caused a major opening round upset.
The 22 year old beat Egypt’s Omar Assar, the no.5 seed in seven games (13-11, 4-11, 12-10, 2-11, 11-5, 5-11, 11-7).
Enzo Angles and Manav Vikash Thakkar upset seeding
Men’s Singles: Round One
Qualifiers Enzo Angles of France and India’s Manav Vikash Thakkar both caused opening round upsets.
Enzo Angles beat Scotland’s Gavin Rumgay, the no.30 seed (12-10, 11-9, 13-11, 11-3); Manav Vikash Thakkar accounted for Hungary’s Bence Majoros (11-9, 12-10, 11-3, 11-13, 11-6).
Defensive skills to liking
Men’s Singles: Round One
A semi-finalist in 2015 in Belarus his best to date at an open international tournament, Japan’s Takuya Jin displayed his liking for defensive play and in so doing caused a major upset.
Required to qualify, he beat Panagiotis Gionis of Greece, the no.4 seed, in six games (11-9, 11-8, 7-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-5).
Qualifiers progress
Men’s Singles: Round One
Argentina’s Gaston Alto, Frenchman Stéphane Ouaiche and Moldova’s Andrei Putuntica all caused upsets as the top half of the draw came to a conclusion.
Gaston Alto beat Nigeria’s Olajide Omotayo, the no.26 seed (10-12, 11-9, 7-11, 11-7, 11-2, 11-9), Stéphane Ouaiche ousted Belgium’s Robin Devos, the no.16 seed (11-13, 11-6, 11-8, 16-14, 6-11, 11-8, 11-9); Andrei Putuntica ended the hopes of Chile’s Gustavo Gomez (11-5, 11-8, 10-12, 11-9, 7-11, 7-11, 11-9).
Men’s Singles: Round One
Form maintained
Men’s Singles: Round One
Runner up the previous week in Belgrade but once again required to qualify; Frenchman Abdel-Kader Salifou maintained the form displayed in the Serbian capital city.
He beat the Czech Republic’s Lubomir Jancarik, the no.11 seed (8-11, 11-8, 7-11, 11-6, 18-16, 12-10).
Andrea Landrieu topples no.7 seed
Men’s Singles: Round One
Required to compete in the qualification tournament, now Andrea Landrieu finds himself with a place in the Round of 32 after the Frenchman pulled off a fantastic 4-3 victory over the no.7 seed from Portugal, Joao Monteiro (4-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 13-11).
Mixed emotions for Slovenian fans
Men’s Singles: Round One
The host nation had a reason to celebrate in round one of the men’s singles event as no.17 seed Deni Kozul successfully came through his match against Croatia’s Tomislav Kolarek by a 4-2 margin (11-7, 12-10, 11-4, 7-11, 6-11, 11-5).
However, there was no such joy for the other Slovenian in action as Peter Hribar suffered a five games defeat at the hands of Hong Kong’s Li Hon Ming (11-9, 8-11, 11-7, 14-12, 11-4).
Positive response
Women’s Singles: Round One
Trailing by two games to one in her opening round meeting with Thailand’s Nanthana Komwong but Brazilian star Bruna Takahashi remained positive, claiming three consecutive games to seal her spot in the round of 32 (9-11, 11-6, 9-11, 11-8, 11-4, 14-12).
“I played against Komwong in Malaysia and I lost 3-2, so I was prepared for her. I was stable during my match and this is what won me the match. I always like to play here. Slovenia is a very nice country to stay in and it is always a pleasure to come back and play in the tournament.” Bruna Takahashi
Yana Noskova stunned
Women’s Singles: Round One
Russia’s Yana Noskova, seeded eighth, has failed to advance from round one in Otocec with Polish qualifier Natalia Bajor prevailing in a seven-game thriller (4-11, 11-9, 11-3, 9-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-4).
Defeat against the odds for Yana Noskova, for colleague Anastasia Kolish is was the opposite; required to qualify she beat Italy’s Debora Vivarelli, the no.23 seed (7-11, 15-13, 11-7, 12-10, 5-11, 11-5).
“I never played against Vivarelli before, so I am pleased that I won. I am looking forward to the next round. It was a difficult match, we fought to the very end.” Anastasia Kolish
Japanese quartet shine
Women’s Singles: Round One
Miyu Nagasaki is safely through to the next stage of the competition, defeating the host nation’s Lara Opeka in straight games (11-5, 11-8, 11-5, 11-8).
There were successes for three further Japanese stars in the 10.35am session as Honami Nakamori, Satsuki Odo and Miyuu Kihara all emerged victorious.
Stars and stripes
Women’s Singles: Round One
Following on from Lily Zhang’s opening round success achieved a little bit earlier, Wu Yue has become the second USA player to book her spot in round two of the women’s singles draw after the no.5 seed recovered from 0-1 down to beat Hong Kong’s Zhu Chengzhu 4-1 (9-11, 11-9, 13-11, 11-8, 11-8).
Perfect start
Women’s Singles: Round One
Adriana Diaz has made the perfect start in her quest for women’s singles glory with the top seeded Puerto Rican competitor seeing off Sweden’s Jennifer Jonsson without dropping a game (11-5, 11-3, 11-8, 11-4).
Manav Vikash Thakkar falls
Under 21 Men’s Singles: Round Two
Seeded second and one of the major contenders for the title but India’s Manav Vikash Thakkar has fallen at the second hurdle in Otocec, losing out to no.22 seed Jules Rolland across four games (12-10, 11-8, 4-11, 14-12).
Italian cruises through
Under 21 Men’s Singles: Round Two
Italy’s Daniele Pinto also progresses to the last 16 following a spectacular display from the no.20 seed, storming to a 3-0 victory over 16th seed Siddhesh Pande (11-4, 11-9, 11-4).
Fourth seed departs
Under 21 Men’s Singles: Round Two
Florian Cnudde is out of the running in the Under 21 men’s singles race after the no.4 seeded player from Belgium failed to convert a two games to one lead against France’s Leo De Nodrest (11-9, 10-12, 9-11, 11-8, 11-4).
Main draw commences
Day One of the Seamaster 2019 ITTF Challenge Slovenia Open has arrived – take a detailed look at the day’s schedule below:
