China caps women's group stage with three straight wins at London table tennis team worlds

Sun Yingsha of China hits a return in the singles match against Kim Nayeong of South Korea during the women's group match between China and South Korea at the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals in London, Britain, on May 3, 2026. [Photo/Xinhua]

China swept South Korea 3-0 on Sunday, concluding the women's team group stage with a perfect winning record at the 2026 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals.

Like the previous two matches, China did not drop a game en route to the win.

World No. 1 Sun Yingsha earned China the lead after breezing past Kim Na-yeong 11-8, 11-4, 11-5.

"As I had played Kim many times before and was quite familiar with her, I just executed what I had prepared in terms of skills and tactics on the court," Sun said after the win.

"As the tournament progresses, everyone will get into a better shape. In a team event, every member needs to step up and shoulder the responsibility. For me, no matter which match and who I play, I just want to contribute the best I can," she added.

Wang Yidi eased past Park Ga-hyeon 11-5, 11-6, 11-4 to move China further ahead.

"After playing two matches yesterday, I was more familiar with the venue," Wang noted.

Kuai Man secured the win for China with an 11-6, 11-9, 11-3 victory over Yoo Si-woo.

"At the beginning, I was not quite used to her rhythm and changes on the first three strokes, which mounted huge pressure on me," Kuai said. "After going through the first three strokes, I had more advantage on rallies."

China tops Group 1 with a win-loss record of 3-0, while South Korea sits bottom without a win. Chinese Taipei and Romania, both at 1-1, will cross swords later on Sunday.

In Group 2, Japan beat Germany 3-1, and France defeated host England 3-0.

In the men's draw, China fell 3-2 to Sweden in a five-match thriller to suffer its second defeat in the group phase.

Despite suffering with a bleeding hand in the second game, world No. 1 Wang Chuqin sailed past Sweden's Anton Kallberg 11-8, 11-5, 11-6.

Playing against Elias Ranefur, China's Lin Shidong lost the first two games 11-9, 11-6, before forcing a decisive fifth game with 11-3, 11-6. However, the 21-year-old debutant let a 9-7 lead slip away on the way to an 11-9 defeat.

Sweden changed its roster, fielding Olympic silver medalist Truls Moregard in the third singles match against Liang Jingkun.

Liang came back twice but wasted a match point at 10-9 in the decider before losing 12-10.

Wang got his second point of the day with a 12-10, 11-6, 11-4 win over Ranefur.

Kallberg beat Lin 12-10, 10-12, 11-8, 11-8 in the deciding match as Sweden notched its third consecutive win.

Featuring 32 teams each in the men's and women's events, the knockout stage will kick off on Monday.