Six Chinese paddlers advance to WTT China Smash main draw

Ser Lin Qian hits a return during the women's singles qualifying round 1 match between Ser Lin Qian of Singapore and Filippa Bergand of Sweden at 2025 World Table Tennis (WTT) China Smash in Beijing, China, Sept. 25, 2025. (Xinhua/Sun Fei)

Six Chinese paddlers made it through to the main draw of the World Table Tennis (WTT) China Smash on Saturday.

In the men's singles third qualifying round, Yuan Licen prevailed 11-3, 7-11, 11-7, 11-4 in an all-Chinese duel against Xu Haidong.

"I got into this match more quickly than him, and executed my tactics resolutely," Yuan said after his win. "After three qualifying rounds, I became more relaxed and adjusted better to the competition."

Chen Junsong sailed past Gustavo Gomez of Chile in straight games, 11-3, 11-9 and 11-8.

"I lacked concentration a little at some points, which I need to avoid in the upcoming matches. This is my first WTT Grand Smash appearance, so I'm happy about making the main draw," Chen noted.

However, Zhou Kai headed for the exit after a nail-biting 12-14, 11-6, 9-11, 11-8, 13-11 loss to India's 18-year-old Ankur Bhattacharjee.

Four Chinese women's players all progressed through the third qualifying round, with Zhu Sibing and Yang Yiyun triumphing in straight games, while Zhu Ziyu stunned 10th-seeded Nina Mittelham of Germany 3-1, and Xu Yi rallied from two games down to edge Huang Yu-jie of Chinese Taipei.

"I was more focused on crucial points, and figured out the way to fighting for every point when trailing or leading," Xu explained.

The main draw opens on Sunday, with women's singles top seed Sun Yingsha facing Japan's Miu Hirano, and men's singles world No. 1 Wang Chuqin will play against Jang Woo-jin of South Korea.

The WTT China Smash will conclude on October 5, with five titles on offer - men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles, and mixed doubles.