Big names continue to fall

The big names continue to fall in qualifying for China Smash in Beijing, with Annett Kaufmann losing out to Suthasini Sawettabut in Friday night’s closing showdown (12-10, 11-5, 12-10).

Seeded top in Women’s Singles qualifying, Kaufmann took to the table for the first time having received a bye in the opening round, and she made a bright start on Friday, opening up a 2-6 advantage.

However, she failed to capitalise on that lead, returning to her corner frustrated after seeing a Game Point slip through her fingers at 9-10.

Kaufmann’s frustration was matched by Sawettabut’s adulation, and things would only continue to get better for the Thai player, who tightened her grip on the match in game two. With the finish line in sight, it was now or never for Kaufmann, and on this occasion, there would be no comeback as Sawettabut closed out an impressive win in Smash Arena.

There was, however, a magical comeback for Daniela Ortega as the Chilean player successfully turned the tide against Swastika Ghosh (7-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 11-8).

Elsewhere, No.2 qualifying seed Charlotte Lutz survived a five-game scare against Ana Codina (6-11, 11-7, 11-7, 9-11, 11-5) to move one step away from the main draw, with Xu Yi also holding her nerve in her showdown with Barbora Varady (12-10, 7-11, 11-1, 6-11, 11-8).

Iulian Chirita, who turned heads with his run to the last 32 at Singapore Smash earlier this season, encountered a second round exit in Men’s Singles qualifying here in Beijing, seeing his hopes ended by Zhou Kai (11-13, 11-3, 11-8, 7-11, 12-10).

There were more loud cheers in the home stands later in the session, as Xu Haidong overturned an early setback to deny Daniel Habesohn 3-1 (8-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-9).

Making it all the way to the U19 final at last month’s Europe Youth Smash – Sweden 2025, all eyes were on Bhattacharjee to see if he could take the next step and deliver on the senior stage.

While he found himself backed up against the ropes early on in Friday’s showdown with Lam, the 18-year-old Indian prodigy showed remarkable fight, refusing to back down even at 0-2.

Little by little, Bhattacharjee began working his way back, raising the temperature in Smash Arena with jaw-dropping attacking prowess, producing high risk audacious table tennis in the face of pressure as he went for the jugular.

Drawing level at 2-2, the comeback was complete, and now the question was, could Bhattacharjee finish the job? You bet he could!

Playing with the wind in his sail, the Indian player gave Lam no room to breathe, going for broke in the closing stages of the match to bank his ticket to the second qualifying round in style.