On January 17, 2025, the WTT regular tournament in Mascate concluded, with the Chinese and Japanese teams sharing the honors, each winning two championships. The Chinese team won the men's singles with Chen Yuanyu and the women's singles with Kuai Man, while the Japanese team won the men's doubles with Tomokazu Harimoto/Koki Niwa and the women's doubles with Sara Toda/Sakura Yokoi. The mixed doubles championship was won by the Spanish pair of Robles/Xiao Yaoqi, with the biggest surprise being the 19-year-old sensation Chen Yuanyu, who defeated Tomokazu Harimoto to make a name for himself.
The Mascate station seamlessly followed the previous Doha station, with a lower level, dropping from 600 points to 400 points. The Chinese team continued to focus on training young players, not arranging any main force players to participate, and even without Qian Tianyi and He Zhuojia. However, two new additions were added: Tan Yuxuan and Wang Xiaotong. Many top players from other associations participated, such as Tomokazu Harimoto and Dimitrij Ovtcharov in the men's singles, and Sara Toda, Miu Hirano, and Manika Batra in the women's singles.
In the men's singles, four Chinese players competed, with Xu Yingbin, Xiang Peng, and Huang Youzheng all losing in foreign matches. Among them, Xiang Peng was eliminated by the 16-year-old Guo Guanhong, performing unsatisfactorily and indirectly causing him to lose the opportunity to participate in the Asian Cup. The 19-year-old sensation Chen Yuanyu seized this opportunity, facing the formidable German veteran Dimitrij Ovtcharov. Chen Yuanyu overcame difficulties and pressure, defeating many strong opponents along the way to advance to the men's singles final.
In the final, he faced Japanese veteran Tomokazu Harimoto, who had just won the men's singles championship at the Doha Star Tournament, consolidating his world No. 3 ranking and boosting his morale. This led many fans to have insufficient confidence in the young Chinese player. However, Chen Yuanyu fought bravely, relying on his outstanding performance to defeat his opponent, causing an unexpected upset. Chen Yuanyu made a name for himself, and his name would be known to more fans.
In the women's singles, six Chinese team members signed up, with Zong Ge man, Wang Xiaotong, and Chen Yi falling behind early. Kuai Man, Shi Xunyao, and Tan Yuxuan advanced to the semifinals. Kuai Man then eliminated Japanese veteran Sara Toda, achieving a three-game winning streak against her. Shi Xunyao defeated Tan Yuxuan, and in the women's singles final, Shi Xunyao shut out Kuai Man, surprising everyone with the score. Indeed, from Chen Yuanyu to Shi Xunyao, both truly fought for their championships.
In the doubles arena, we didn't have as big of a harvest, only winning the silver medal in the mixed doubles with Huang Youzheng/Shi Xunyao, who lost to the Spanish pair of Robles/Xiao Yaoqi. We didn't make it to the finals in the other two events, with the Japanese pairs emerging as winners, with Tomokazu Harimoto/Koki Niwa winning the men's doubles and Sara Toda/Sakura Yokoi winning the women's doubles. In summary, the Mascate station was a worthwhile trip for the Chinese team, especially with the rise of the young sensation Chen Yuanyu, which made everyone particularly happy.
The five champions of the Mascate station are as follows:
Chen Yuanyu (men's singles)
Shi Xunyao (women's singles)
Robles/Xiao Yaoqi (mixed doubles)
Tomokazu Harimoto/Koki Niwa (men's doubles)
Sara Toda/Sakura Yokoi (women's doubles)