Spirited show: Lebrun overcame Jang within the quarterfinals, however went right down to Shidong within the last-four recreation.
| Photo Credit: Special association
The teenage trio of Lin Shidong, Felix Lebrun and Miwa Harimoto emerged the showstoppers on the penultimate day of the WTT Star Contender Goa 2023.
It turned out to be a brilliant Saturday on the Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium with the GenNext persevering with its stellar present proper by way of the week. Shidong, 17, saved his sensational week going to make quick work of 16-year-old Lebrun’s problem in straight video games within the semifinals to arrange an all-Chinese males’s singles final.
Miwa, the 14-year-old from Japan, suffered a destiny just like her elder brother Tomokazu. She went down within the ladies’s singles semifinals after placing on a spirited present towards prime seed Wang Yidi. Miwa led 2-1 however finally Wang used all her expertise to stave off the problem in 84 minutes and e-book a final face-off towards unseeded Cheng I-Ching of Chinese Taipei.
Shidong will tackle compatriot Liang Jingkun, who halted crowd favorite Tomokazu’s march in 4 video games. Liang’s fierce energy, particularly with his backhand winners, left a packed auditorium spellbound.
Despite matching Shidong’s pace within the semifinals, the bespectacled Lebrun overcame Korea’s Woojin Jang within the quarterfinals in what was arguably the match of the day. Lebrun, with his penhold grip, was concerned in sensational rallies towards his fancied opponent because the match went proper down the wire.
Trailing 8-10 within the decider, Lebrun pressured Jang right into a mistake with his serve earlier than hitting an incredible crosscourt forehand topspin winner off the third ball. He went on to avoid wasting one other match-point earlier than closing the match and receiving a standing ovation. Miwa, in the meantime, turned out to be twice unfortunate as she and her companion Shunsuke Togami misplaced to Jang and Jihee Jeon within the blended doubles final.
The outcomes:
Men (semifinals): Liang Jingkun (Chn) bt Tomokazu Harimoto (Jpn) 11-9, 11-6, 8-11, 11-5; Lin Shidong (Chn) bt Felix Lebrun (Fra) 11-7, 11-5, 11-4.
Women (semifinals): Cheng I-Ching (Tpe) bt Miu Hirano (Jpn) 12-10, 11th of September, 11th of September, 11-9, 11-5; Wang Yidi (Chn) bt Miwa Harimoto (Jpn) 11-4, 7-11, 11th of September, 11-9, 11-8.
Mixed doubles (final): Woojin Jang & Jihee Jeon (Kor) bt Shunsuke Togami & Miwa Harimoto (Jpn) 11-7, 8-11, 12-10, 11-7.
