Chen Xingtong of China hits a shot in the women's singles match against Bernadette Szocs of Romania at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Champions Frankfurt in Frankfurt, Germany, November 6, 2024. /WTT
Fourth-seeded Chen Xintong of China came back to defeat Bernadette Szocs of Romania 6-11, 11-4, 11-3, 11-5 in the women's singles round of 16 at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Champions Frankfurt in Frankfurt, Germany, on Wednesday, advancing to the quarterfinals at the tournament.
It took Chen longer than her opponent to find her rhythm in the first game which the Romanian clinched 11-6. However, Chen bounced back quickly, beginning the second game with an early 4-1 lead and taking it soon to tie the match at 1-1.
Chen's dynamic offense continued to be unstoppable for Szocs in the third game before the Chinese claimed another easy win to lead 2-1 in the battle. Szocs' coach called a timeout when she trailed 6-3 in the fourth, but it didn't help much as Chen kept her lead till the end to win the mach.
Chen will face Satsuki Odo of Japan in the last eight.
Chinese men's singles top seed Wang Chuqin was knocked out in the round of 16 by Anton Kallberg of Sweden 11-8, 11-5, 11-6. It was the second time for Wang to lose a WTT match without taking a single game.
Wang has been in a poor form since he was eliminated early in the men's singles at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games in July. He has lost a total of six matches in less than four months, the same as he did in three years before the Paris Olympics.
Kallberg will play wildcard player Ricardo Walther of Germany in the quarterfinals.