Chinese Women Paddlers Dominate US Open SinglesThe Chinese women paddlers secured three of the semifinal berths by sweeping their opponents in the quarterfinals of the US Open/ITTF Pro Tour on Friday.Top-ranked Wang Nan who disposed Suk Eun Mi of South Korea this morning by straight sets, continued her adventure despite losing her first set, by beating chopper Jing Tian-Zoerner of Germany 22- 20, 21-12, 18-21 and 21-17 for her semifinal berth. "Facing a chopper, I must refrain from upsetting myself emotionally," said Wang Nan, "and the winner will be the one with patience and surely with prowess." Second-ranked Li Ju had a relatively easy victory by beating compatriot Yang Ying 21-16, 21-16 and 21-14 after eliminating An Konishi of Japan 3-1 in the morning. Li Ju will face another teammate in the semifinal as Sun Jin defeated Ni Xia Lian of Luxemburg 21-16, 21-10 and 21-10 this afternoon, following a victory over Steff Mihaela of Romania this morning. The other semifinal berth was snatched by Chen Jing of Chinese Taipei who savored a hard win over Ryu Ji Hye of South Korea after being extracted to full sets. Chen Jing who defeated another South Korean Kim Moo Kyo 3-1 in the morning, was plunged into a see-saw battle against Ryu as both paddlers split the first four sets through intense competitions. Chen Jing only established her dominance in the fifth set by initiating a 4-1 lead and enlarging her advantage to 12-2 before sealing the match 21-19, 15-21, 22-20, 17-21 and 21-10. The semifinals and finals will be held on Saturday, with Wang Nan of China facing Chen Jing of Chinese Taipei and Li Jun playing her Chinese compatriot Sun Jin. |
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