On January 9, 2025, the Star Challenge in Doha continued, with Chinese table tennis players achieving success in singles matches. Qian Tianyi defeated South Korean player Kim Na-young 3-1, while Japanese men's team top seed Tomokazu Harimoto advanced by sweeping German player Wolter without any upsets.
In the women's singles 1/16 final, Qian Tianyi faced off against South Korean player Kim Na-young. Qian Tianyi is a left-handed player who has been focused on by the coaching staff, especially suitable for doubles play. She forms a stable lineup with Chen Xingtong and maintains a high win rate in international competitions. In the first ranking event of the new year, the main players were absent, with Chen Xingtong not registering. Qian Tianyi partnered with Shi Xunyao in women's doubles but did not participate in mixed doubles, leaving opportunities for other young players.
Qian Tianyi also has impressive singles results, ranked 11th in the world in women's singles, which speaks volumes. After this event, she should be able to return to the top ten if everything goes as expected. Her main competitors include Tomokazu Harimoto and others. She previously advanced to the second round by default and now faces Kim Na-young, who is ranked 32nd. As a local South Korean player, Kim Na-young is currently being heavily cultivated by the coaching staff, but her achievements are average at best.
It's worth noting that Kim Na-young is participating in three events. She lost in mixed doubles with partner Lin Zhongxun to Huang Youzheng/Shi Xunyao, met teammates in women's doubles with partner Liu Hana, and had the worst luck in singles, encountering Qian Tianyi so early. Before the match, it was generally believed that this would be the end of the road for Kim Na-young, as the two players are not on the same level. Even if Kim Na-young performs exceptionally well, it would be difficult for her to cause much trouble for Qian Tianyi. Currently, attention should still be paid to Shen Yubin.
After the start of the match, Qian Tianyi appeared relaxed in the first game, mainly because Kim Na-young's returns were of low quality. Although there were some variations in the first three boards, the overall threat was limited. Qian Tianyi maintained her lead and took the first game 11-6. In the second game, Qian Tianyi made more unnecessary mistakes and was beaten 11-9 by Kim Na-young. The opponent's serve was quite distinctive, and if not received well, it was easy to go into the net, requiring a familiarization process.
The third game was another key point, with Kim Na-young missing an opportunity. Qian Tianyi did not relent and returned fire with a 16-14 score, producing many high-quality rallies during this period. In the fourth game, Kim Na-young adopted a conservative strategy, waiting for her opponent to make the first mistake, which put her in a passive position. Qian Tianyi took the lead throughout and ended the game 11-6, ultimately defeating Kim Na-young 3-1. Although the process was somewhat bumpy, the result was good, and Qian Tianyi advanced to the women's singles 16.
At the same time, a Japanese player has already advanced to the men's singles 16, with Tomokazu Harimoto sweeping German player Wolter 3-0 (11-9, 11-2, 11-9). On the Chinese side, there are still three players: Xiang Peng, Huang Youzheng, and Chen Yuanyu. This time, it will be quite challenging to stop Tomokazu Harimoto from winning the championship.