China top group, reach last-16 at Busan table tennis team worlds

BUSAN, South Korea, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's men's and women's teams finished as group winners with four wins in a row to reach the last-16 at the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals here on Monday.

Sending their top three players to the court, China shut down Croatia, their biggest threat in the men's group stage, in straight sets.

Coming out of the gate first, Fan Zhendong broke open a 5-5 tie with five unanswered points to emerge victorious 11-6 in the first game against Tomislav Pucar.

Pucar, ranked 48th in the world, used his ferocious forehand to gain the upper hand at 10-8 in the second game, but top-ranked Fan held his nerve to save two game points on his way to a 12-10 win.

Fan kept piercing his Croatian opponent's defense with his backhand flicks. After the two paddlers went neck and neck for a 9-9 tie in the third game, Fan kept his cool to bag two points to prevail.

"When we fought until the last points in the second and third games, I kept my patience at that time, so it was a good test for me to win these two games," commented Fan.

Second-ranked Wang Chuqin dispatched Filip Zeljko 11-6, 11-5, 11-6 to earn the defending champions a two-set lead.

World No. 3 Ma Long showcased his attacking firepower in rapid exchanges, winning 11-8, 11-4 in the first two games. Kojic's form then escalated as he built a 9-5 lead in the third game, but Ma notched six points in a row to ensure China's group-leading finish without dropping a set.

"Trailing in the third game, I didn't ponder much over making adjustments, while seeing it slip off my hand. I just fought for every point," Ma explained.

The competition format sees eight group leaders per gender qualifying directly for the round of 16, while second- and third-placed teams in each group will cross swords for the remaining eight berths.

Discussing the upcoming knockout stage, the Chinese trio highlighted the importance of concentration.

"The knockout stage leaves little space for errors, and you will get punished if you make mistakes, so I have to be more cautious in the second stage and make better preparations," said Fan.

"Playing against strong sides like Belgium and Croatia helps me better prepare for the next stage," Wang noted.

"You need to get into the rhythm of the game more quickly in the second stage, as there will be no time for adjustment," Ma noted.

In the women's event, China concluded their group stage campaign with a perfect winning record after conquering Hungary 3-0.

Chen Meng started China's quest as the reigning Olympic champion outperformed Dora Madarasz 11-5, 11-3, 11-3.

"As it is my third match in the Busan event, I feel that I'm fitting better into the atmosphere and space game after game," said Chen.

Sun Yingsha was next to hit the court, and the world No. 1 overwhelmed Mercedes Nagyvaradi 11-2, 11-5, 11-2.

"After encountering some problems in our first match [against India], I've been playing better and better. As the second stage approaches, we will embrace it with a better mentality and go all out with our concerted efforts," Sun remarked.

In her second appearance in Busan, Wang Yidi saw off Bernadett Balint 11-8, 11-5, 11-6.

"In my first match [against India], I was a bit impatient," admitted Wang. "After losing it, I did better in adjusting my mentality."

The men's and women's round-of-16 matches will take place on Wednesday.