China overcame world No. 1 Wang Chuqin’s shocking defeat in the opening set to dispatch Iran 3-1, reaching the men’s team semifinals of the Asian Table Tennis Championships here on Tuesday. As the first Chinese paddler out of the gate, Wang conceded a gruelling 11-8, 3-11, 9-11, 13-11, 11-9 loss to 14-year-old Benyamin Faraji, who sits 209 places lower than him in the world rankings.
Riding the wave of his favourable form in recent tournaments, 19-year-old Lin Shidong helped China restore parity, also through five exhilarating games, ultimately triumphing 13-11, 11-13, 18-16, 5-11, 11-6 over Noshad Alamiyan, reports Xinhua.
After Liang Jingkun swept past Mohammad Mousavi Taher in straight games, Wang secured redemption with a 3-1 victory over Alamiyan to secure the defending champions’ spot in the semifinals.
China will vie for a final spot with South Korea, who eliminated Japan 3-1, in Thursday’s last-four stage clash.
China will take on DPR Korea in the women’s team quarterfinals later on Tuesday.
The 27th Asian Table Tennis Championships run from Monday to Sunday in Astana, Kazakhstan, featuring a total of seven events, namely men’s and women’s teams, singles and doubles events, and the mixed doubles event.
As the Asian qualifiers for the 2025 World Table Tennis Championships in Doha, Qatar, it will also produce some qualification quotas for the world.