WTT Report! Tomokazu Harimoto Shaves His Head, Chen Yuanyu Sweeps the Dark Horse 3-0, Singles Finals Matchups Revealed
At 1:17 am Beijing time on January 17th, 2025, the WTT regular challenge match in Masqat continued. Both the men's singles and women's singles played two rounds, and the women's singles final seats have been produced.
Kuaiman defeated Daito Satsuki, Shi Xunyao defeated teammate Tan Yuxuan, and the national table tennis team has locked in the women's singles championship in advance. In the men's singles semi-finals, the first to play is the young national table tennis player Chen Yuanyu, who faced Guo Guanhong, a younger player from Chinese Taipei. This 16-year-old player previously defeated Xiang Peng and performed well, becoming the dark horse of the men's singles at this station.
Guo Guanhong started very aggressively with a 4-1 lead, but Chen Yuanyu did not handle the reception well. However, he quickly tied the score at 5-5, made a decisive serve and attack, and after a tussle to 8-8, Chen Yuanyu's connection speed was fast and of high quality, winning 11-8.
In the second set, both sides started with a 3-3 tie. Chen Yuanyu controlled his serve well, while Guo Guanhong played actively, adding power and quality to his forehand and backhand. The middle of the game was 5-5, and the battle was fierce all the way. Chen Yuanyu ended the set at 9-7, making firm shots and relatively advantageous rallies, winning again 11-8.
In the third set, Chen Yuanyu made an attacking error and trailed 2-4. Later, he scored through attacks, maintaining good rhythm, and overtook 6-5. He better restricted Guo Guanhong in the first three boards, playing more delicately and steadily inside the table, and Chen Yuanyu locked in the victory at 1-8. All three sets were evenly matched in the first half, but Chen Yuanyu played better overall in the second half.
The other semi-final was between Tomokazu Harimoto and Wong Chun Ting. Previously, Harimoto was in great form and had a significant advantage over Wong Chun Ting.
Wong Chun Ting started quickly and led 3-1, but after Harimoto steadied himself, he scored four points in a row to take the lead 5-3. Later, Wong Chun Ting controlled short and scored with a forehand smash to catch up to 8-8. Harimoto then scored two consecutive serves to reach match point at 10-8. Wong Chun Ting attacked wide and missed, allowing Harimoto to win the first set 11-9.
The second set started fiercely at 3-3. Later, Wong Chun Ting lost points continuously and was suppressed by Harimoto, mainly focusing on the first three boards and not doing well in receiving serves, losing six points in a row to trail 3-9. He then scored two points in a row from serves to close the gap slightly, but still lost 7-11.
In the third set, Wong Chun Ting took the lead 3-1 through active attacks and forehand rallies. However, he then ate several serves consecutively, and the middle of the game was tied at 6-6. Although he played well in the mid-to-long range, in strong confrontations, Harimoto had the advantage, suppressing Wong Chun Ting with speed, and his backhand was even more advantageous. He ultimately won the match 11-8, defeating Wong Chun Ting 3-0 and successfully advancing to the final.
Thus, the men's singles final will be a showdown between China and Japan, and from a strength perspective, Chen Yuanyu has the opportunity to defeat Tomokazu Harimoto.