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Min Seok spoils China’s party

Rakesh Rao

TABLE TENNIS / Sathiyan, Mallika stopped in quarterfinals

JAIPUR: China may have swept the majority of titles in the 15th Asian junior table tennis championship but Korea, for the second successive year, enjoyed the vicarious pleasure of spoiling its arch-rival’s party by winning the junior boys’ final.

Ranked 18th in the world, fifth seed Kim Min Seok staged a dream rally after losing the first three games to third seed Yan An and saved five match-points before winning 5-11, 12-14, 8-11, 11-5, 11-1, 17-15, 15-13 in 55 minutes.

This meant Korea kept the title won by Lee Sang Soo at the expense of China’s Song Hongyuan in Singapore last July.

Three for China

For the record, China, in addition to retaining all four team championships, won three titles. Korea claimed two and Japan managed one.

For China, which ensured the junior girls’ title this morning by monopolising all four semifinal spots, second seed and World junior champion Cao Lisi beat Xue Siyu 11-6, 9-11, 11-7, 6-11, 11-9, 5-11, 11-7.

Last year, Cao Lisi had finished runner-up but won all four medals in the World junior championship.

Though both singles final went the distance, the girls title-match resembled an exhibition tie until the players looked seriously competitive in the deciding game.

Memorable battle

But the boys final turned out to be a memorable battle fought before the vociferous players-turned-supporters from China and Korea. In a match packed with long-rallied, brilliant retrieves and subtle variation of pace from the players, the resilience and the never-say-die spirit of Kim Min Seok was richly rewarded. For the better part of the contest, Yan An looked like completing China’s singles double. A bronze medallist in the World championship and a quarterfinalist in this meet last year, Yan An was instrumental in China winning the team championship two days ago. Ranked eighth in the world, Yan An upstaged second seed Chen Chien An of Chinese Taipei in straight games in the semifinal to emerge as a title-favourite.

Kim Min Seok, who rallied from 2-6 in the sixth game and again 3-6 in the seventh, saved six match points —including five in the penultimate game and converted his fourth when Yan An netted a forehand return.

Earlier in the quarterfinals, the eventual champion stopped G. Sathiyan 11-7, 11-3, 11-7, 11-6 and then beat Chinese underdog Liu Yi, the lad responsible for the first-round exit of Korean top seed Seo Hyun Deok.

India’s interest ended when Mallika Bhandarkar lost in the cadet quarterfinals to Singapore’s Li Siyun Isabelle 13-11, 12-10, 11-9, 7-11, 12-10. She finished eighth after losing the two playoff matches to China’s Zhang Qiang and Sato Yui.

The results (all finals):

Junior boys: Kim Min Seok (Kor) bt Yan An (Chn) 5-11, 12-14, 8-11, 11-5, 11-1, 17-15, 15-13.

Junior girls: Cao Lisi (Chn) bt Xue Siyu (Chn) 11-6, 9-11, 11-7, 6-11, 11-9, 5-11, 11-7.

Cadet boys:Yin Hang (Chn) bt Asuka Machi (Jpn) 11-9, 13-15, 9-11, 12-10, 11-8, 11-7;

Cadet girls: Yan Ha Eun (Kor) bt Miyu Maeda (Jpn) 13-11, 8-11, 16-18, 11-4, 9-11, 11-6;

Junior boys doubles: Yan An & Li Muqiao (Chn) bt Kim Min Seok & Seo Jung Hwa (Kor) 11-7, 11-5, 11-5.

Junior girls doubles: Misaki Morizono & Ayuka Tanioka (Jpn) bt Che Xiaoxi & Xue Siyu (Chn) 8-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-7.

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