Table Tennis World Cup: Feng Tianwei in quarter-final; mixed fortunes for Li Jiawei and Wang Yuegu

By Koh Yizhe/Red Sports. Photos by Low Sze Sen and Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports

Toa Payoh Sports Hall, Friday, October 29, 2011 –- World number four Feng Tianwei qualified for the quarter-final of the 2011 Women’s Table Tennis World Cup after she won her opening two matches in Group 3.

Her compatriots, Wang Yuegu and Li Jia Wei, still have to fight for qualificaiton. Having each won one and lost one match in Group 2, they will have to secure victory in their final group match to have any hope of making it to the next round.

Singapore’s top paddler, Feng, was blessed with an easier group, but she made life difficult for herself in the opening match, losing the first set 10-12 before eventually beating Hong Kong’s Jiang Huajun 4-1 (10-12, 11-6, 11-7, 11-6, 11-3).

It did not get any better in her next match when she had to fend off eighth seed Sayaka Hirano’s challenge to eventually win 4-2 (9-11, 11-9, 11-7, 10-12, 11-8, 11-5).

In the last match of the day, the Singaporean struggled to find her groove in the opening set and was constantly pegged back by her Japanese opponent. It was only till the second set that she was settled, but even then, the 25-year-old did not look comfortable.

After winning the third set but dropping the fourth, Feng’s experience eventually shone through. She traded points with Hirano throughout the fifth set before sprinting away to win it 11-8. The sixth set was easy, as she blitz her opponent 11-5 in a quick final set.

“I had quite a relaxed first match, but as the timing of the second match was quite late, I felt a little tired,” commented Feng Tianwei after the match.

“Especially towards the later part of the match when I started falling behind, I told myself that I better cool down and think about things carefully. Overall I am still satisfied with my performance because during the tough moments in the match, I managed to hold on.”

With regards to her final group game, Feng expressed her confidence but added that she still cannot underestimate her opponent and will still put equal importance on the match.

Wang Yuegu had a day of mix emotions on the opening day of the US$150,000 event. In her first match, she beat fellow Singaporean Li Jia Wei 4-2 (11-5, 11-6, 11-8, 13-15, 8-11, 11-9) to set herself up nicely for her next match against second seed Ding Ning of China.

However, despite taking two set off her opponent, Wang was unable to capitalise on Ding’s sluggish performance and eventually went down 2-4 (11-7, 12-14, 11-4, 11-13, 11-6, 11-3).

“I felt that I managed to play up to my standard,” said Wang after the match.

“However, there were some occasions when there were tight rallies and I did not grab hold of my chances properly. I was a little too anxious. My opponent did not play aggressively like she always do so it is a pity that I could not capitalise on that.”

“I’ll definitely work hard to get into the top eight.”

With Ding Ning qualifying for the quarter-final with two wins, it is down to the two Singaporeans to see who gets a place in the last eight after Li Jia Wei demolished Li Jiao of the Netherlands (11-4, 11-2, 11-5, 11-9).

Li will face Ding Ning while Wang plays Li Jiao in their final group game.

Match fixtures (Singapore players)
SATURDAY (October 29):
11.15am
(Table 1): Li Jiawei (SIN) vs Ding Ning (CHN)
(Table 2): Wang Yuegu (SIN) vs Li Jiao (NED)
1.30pm
(Table 1): Feng Tianwei (SIN) vs ICC Winner

The fixtures for the second stage will be conducted on October 29th at 2.30pm
The quarter-finals will start at 6.30pm

For more photos, go to the next page.