Five Chinese players reach 2023 WTT Men's Finals quarters-Xinhua

Fan Zhendong hits a return during the men's singles quarterfinal between Quadri Aruna of Nigeria and Fan Zhendong of China at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Dongzhen)

DOHA, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- The 2023 World Table Tennis (WTT) Men's Finals kicked off here on Wednesday, with five out of six players of the Chinese team advancing to the quarterfinals.

The three-day tournament brings together the world's top 16 men's singles players and eight pairs of men's doubles.

The opening match witnessed China's Liang Jingkun versus Lin Yun-Ju of Chinese Taipei. Liang took a 2-0 lead with scores of 11-6 and 17-15. Lin won the third set 11-3 before Liang dominated the fourth set 11-5 to win the match and advance to the quarterfinals.

"My overall performance today was quite good, especially in the first two sets. In the third set, I lost focus despite being in the lead," Liang said.

The only Chinese paddler losing in the singles first round was Lin Shidong who took on Germany's Qiu Dang. Qiu won the thriller with 11-9, 11-8, 7-11, 2-11, 11-8 and will meet Liang in the quarterfinals.

China's world No. 1 Fan Zhendong fought hard to advance, narrowly beating Slovenia's Darko Jorgic 7-11, 11-7, 11-7, 17-19, 11-8.

After the match, Fan urged fans to adhere to on-site rules. "Overall, my performance today was relatively normal, and the scores were very close. At a crucial moment in the fourth set, a sudden shout emerged, which indeed had a significant impact on me."

Fan will next meet Nigeria's Quadri Aruna who secured a comeback win over Brazil's Hugo Calderano.

The other three elites from China, Ma Long, Lin Gaoyuan and Wang Chuqin, all eased through to the quarterfinals, beating South Korea's Jang Woo-jin, Sweden's Anton Kallberg and France's Felix Lebrun respectively.

Japan's Tomokazu Harimoto pulled off a 3-2 win over Germany's Dimitrij Ovtcharov to complete the top eight.

Ma's next opponent is teammate Lin Gaoyuan, while Wang will face Harimoto. ■

Fan Zhendong reacts during the men's singles quarterfinal between Quadri Aruna of Nigeria and Fan Zhendong of China at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Dongzhen)

Qiu Dang celebrates winning the men's singles quarterfinal between Liang Jingkun of China and Qiu Dang of Germany at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Photo by Nikku/Xinhua)

Fan Zhendong (top) hits a return during the men's singles quarterfinal between Quadri Aruna of Nigeria and Fan Zhendong of China at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Photo by Nikku/Xinhua)

Qiu Dang hits a return during the men's singles quarterfinal between Liang Jingkun of China and Qiu Dang of Germany at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Dongzhen)

Liang Jingkun celebrates scoring during the men's singles quarterfinal between Liang Jingkun of China and Qiu Dang of Germany at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Dongzhen)

Photo taken on Jan. 4, 2024 shows a general view of the men's singles quarterfinal between Quadri Aruna of Nigeria and Fan Zhendong of China at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar. (Photo by Nikku/Xinhua)

Qiu Dang (L) greets Liang Jingkun after the men's singles quarterfinal between Liang Jingkun of China and Qiu Dang of Germany at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Dongzhen)

Quadri Aruna hits a return during the men's singles quarterfinal between Quadri Aruna of Nigeria and Fan Zhendong of China at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 table tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 4, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Dongzhen)