Other Events | 19 Jun 2016
Vladimir SAMSONOV tested ZHANG Jike
Photo: ITTF
2016 ITTF World Tour Laox Open
For most of the players the 2016 ITTF World Tour Laox Open will be the last tournament before the start of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. More the month before the start of the Games, Chinese players once again demonstrated their power. They dominated proceedings at the quarter-final stage of the Men’s Singles event.
Four Chinese players MA Long, FAN Zhendong, XU Xin and ZHANG Jike booked all four places that lead to the semis. It was the end of the road for Jun MIZUTANI, Simon GAUZY, WONG Chun Ting and Vladimir SAMSONOV.
In Tokyo, ZHANG Jike, the no.4 seed, was once again tested; he needed six games to overcome Vladimir SAMSONOV, the no.8 seed (11-8, 5-11, 15-13, 11-2, 8-11, 11-6).
Ma Long, the top seed, ended the hopes of the host nation by beating Jun MIZUTANI, the no.5 seed, in four straight games (11-7, 11-8, 11-9, 11-8). FAN Zhendong, the no.2 seed, overcame Frenchman Simon GAUZY in five games (7-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-6, 11-8).
XU Xin, the no.3 seed, ended the hopes of Hong Kong’s WONG Chun Ting by a similar margin (11-7, 11-5, 8-11, 11-3, 11-8).
At the semi-final stage MA Long meets XU Xin, ZHANG Jike opposes FAN Zhendong. In Women's Singles event at the semi-final stage LIU Shiwen meets ZHU Yuling, DING Ning opposes CHENG I-Ching.
