Sun Yingsha keeps her hopes alive with stellar performances, in all 3 events at the WTT Singapore Smash!

(China's Sun Yingsha. Photo Credit : WTT)

By Pearlyn Koh

Spectacular table tennis action continues, at the first-ever inaugural WTT Singapore Smash, held at the OCBC Arena from 7 - 20 March. On Day 6 (16 March), fans from Singapore and all around the world witnessed the world’s best players in action, as the final 3 matches of the Round of 16 Men’s and Women’s Singles took place, followed by the Men’s and Women’s Doubles Semi-finals, before the day ended off with the Mixed Doubles Finals!

Competing in all 3 events - Women’s Singles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles was world number 1 Sun Yingsha. Despite only being 21 years of age, Yingsha has already been making waves in the sport. At the Tokyo Olympics, Yingsha scored a gold and silver medal each in the Women’s Team and Singles events respectively. And just last December at the very same arena in the Lion City, Yingsha also made her mark when she won the first-ever WTT Cup Finals.

(China's Sun Yingsha. Photo Credit : WTT)

Her very first match of Day 6 (16 March) was the Round of 16 Women’s Singles match, where she was up against teammate and senior, Liu Shiwen. In their respective matches leading up to their encounter, Yingsha beat Winter Sabine (GER) and Kuai Man (CHN) both in straight games, while Shiwen overcame Jeon Jihee (KOR) and Shan Xiaona (GER), also in straight games!

The duo’s clash in Singapore marks their 10th career meeting. Prior to their match-up today, their head-to-head record was 5-4, in favour of Shiwen. And at their most recent encounter at the WTT Macao earlier in January this year, it was the 30-year-old Shiwen who scored the victory, 4-2! The current world number 17 Shiwen would have hoped to repeat her previous win once again at the Singapore Smash. But her hopes were ultimately dashed as she fell to the reigning world number 1 3-0 (11-5, 11-5, 11-9).

(China's Liu Shiwen. Photo Credit : WTT)

Game 1 began steadily, with both players at 3 points apiece. Then, the 21-year-old and Tokyo Olympic Women’s Singles silver medalist executed her game plan of forcing Shiwen to her backhand corner. Yingsha’s strategy was highly effective, as Shiwen made a series of unforced errors on her backhand, allowing Yingsha to claim 5 straight points to take the lead 8-3, before sealing off Game 1 11-5!

In Game 2, Shiwen was hoping for a different outcome as she scored the first 2 points on offer. But Shiwen’s younger opponent still proved too strong at the OCBC Arena, as she took the next 5 points, bringing herself to a 5-2 lead. Yingsha managed to sustain her lead all the way till 8-3, before she exerted her dominance and clinched the second game 11-5.

(China's Liu Shiwen. Photo Credit : WTT)

Learning from the previous two games, the 30-year-old world champion knew she had to switch her strategy by being more aggressive and precise in her placements, in order to cause some threat to her 21-year-old opponent. Trailing 2-0, Shiwen was still holding on to hope as she took 4 out of the first 5 points on offer in Game 3, to lead 4-1! The 3rd game gave fans some hope that the older player was going to turn the tables around, as she managed to sustain her lead from 4-1, all the way to 9-6. But it was déjà vu for Shiwen ultimately, as she lost the next 5 points, handing the third game to her opponent 11-9!

With her Round of 16 win, Yingsha proceeds to the last 8 of the tournament, setting up a meeting with world number 6, Hina Hayata of Japan.

Said Yingsha in a post-match interview “I have played with Shiwen many times, and I think what’s most important for me is learning something each time we encounter. Competing in 3 events at the Singapore Smash is more of a mental than physical challenge for me, especially as we progress to the last few days of the tournament. But right now, I am feeling quite great and I think I am playing better each day here.”

The world number 1 continued her second match of Day 6 (16 March) to partner with teammate Wang Manyu in the Women’s Doubles Semi-finals. The duo overcame Luxembourg’s Ni Xia Lian/Sarah De Nutte 3-0 (11-8, 11-5, 11-5) and will next face 2nd seeds, Mima Ito/Hina Hayata of Japan in the grand final!

(China's Sun Yingsha and Wang Chuqin. Photo Credit : WTT)

Following her 2 wins, Yingsha perfectly ended Day 6 (16 March) as she won her 3rd match of the day, in the Mixed Doubles Finals, earning herself a Gold medal at the first-ever WTT Singapore Smash! Together with partner Wang Chuqin, the Chinese pair triumphed against Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yun-ju/Cheng I-Ching 3-1 (11-3, 12-10, 11-4)

Event details

Date: 7 to 20 March

Venue: OCBC Arena, Singapore Sports Hub

Tickets: go.gov.sg/wttsingaporesmashticket

Tickets start from $10 for qualifying matches and $18 for main draw matches. All spectators to Singapore Smash 2022 are to abide by the necessary Safe Management Measures. Spectators attending Singapore Smash must be fully vaccinated and submit a negative self-administered ART test result before entry into OCBC Arena. Please visit go.gov.sg/wttsingaporesmashticket for more information.

Pearlyn Koh has been playing Table Tennis competitively for 9 years. She’s currently a member of the National Team and had represented Singapore at several major tournaments, including the 2018 Asian Games and World Table Tennis Championships. In 2019, Pearlyn was also the sole Southeast Asian player to enter the Top 16 at the Asian Junior & Cadet Table Tennis Championships. During her free time, Pearlyn enjoys reading and catching up with her friends.