China’s Chen claims maiden Table Tennis World Cup title as action resumes

Thursday, 12 November 2020 00:00 -     - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Chen Meng


Reuters: World number one Chen Meng beat Chinese compatriot Sun Yingsha 11-13 11-6 11-9 11-6 11-8 to win her maiden ITTF Women’s World Cup title in Weihai on Tuesday as international table tennis returned from an eight-month hiatus due to COVID-19.

Chen’s victory at the bio-secure Weihai Nanhai Olympic Center made her the first winner of the ITTF’s #RESTART series and also took her tally of senior singles titles to 19.

“Last month, I also won a title in the same venue and now this World Cup is a high point for me,” the 26-year-old Chen said, referring to her China National Championships win.

“This will help my confidence going into the next tournament and I hope that at the ITTF Finals in Zhengzhou I can continue my good form and win another title.”

Japan’s Mima Ito took the bronze medal after beating Han Ying of Germany in straight games.

Weihai will host a men’s World Cup tournament between Nov. 13-15 with 21 players, including reigning world and Olympic champion Ma Long and top-ranked Fan Zhendong set to compete.

The third and final event of the #RESTART series will be the ITTF Finals between 19-22 November in Zhengzhou.

The women’s and men’s World Cup events were originally set to take place in Bangkok, Thailand and then Duesseldorf, Germany before the ITTF moved them to China.

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