DUBAI // China underlined their status in the world of table tennis by winning both the men's and women's titles at the World Team Cup Classic at the Al Nasr Club yesterday.
Furthermore, they won in emphatic style; victories in both finals were by the margin of three matches to nil. In the women's team final, Guo Yue set China on the road to gold when she beat Wang Yue Gu in three straight games.
Guo Yan followed with a four-games victory over Feng Tianwei leaving Guo Yue and Li Xiaoxia the task of concluding matters; in clinical fashion, the reigning world champions duly obliged. They posted a straight-games victory over Li Jiawei and Wang Yue Gu. The Chinese team had emphatically stated that they are the best in the world and that the defeat against Singapore, experienced earlier in the year in May in the women's team final at the Liebherr World Team Championships in Moscow, was not to be repeated. Noticeably in Moscow, Liu Shiwen and Ding Ning had joined forces with Guo Yan; neither was selected for the final in Dubai.
"We have many good players in China, so I wanted to give others an opportunity," Shi Zhihao, the Chinese women's team head coach, said.
"Also it's a different format here in Dubai, the third match is doubles, in Moscow there was no doubles in a fixture; Guo Yue and Li Xiaoxia combine to make the best doubles pairing in the world, they are the world champions." Success for China in the women's team event and then later in the day success for the men's team comprising Wang Hao, Ma Long and Xu Xin.
They beat Korea by three matches to nil. Wang Hao beat Jung Young Sik, Ma Long defeated Lee Jung Woo with the doubles partnership of Ma Long and Xu Xin beating Lee Jung Woo and Oh Sang Eun to bring matters to an end.
* Agency
