China reached the ITTF Mixed Team World Cup final after beating Romania 8-1 in the semifinals in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on Sunday morning, with a perfect record of 10 consecutive wins.
Wang Chuqin (L) and Sun Yingsha in action during ITTF Mixed Team World Cup semifinals in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China, December 8, 2024. /CFP
In the mixed doubles match, top-ranked Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha beating and Ovidiu Ionescu and Bernadette Szocs 2-1. Later in the women's singles match, Wang Manyu took a straight-game win against Adina Diaconu to put China 5-1 ahead. In the men's singles match, 19-year-old Lin Shidong also took a straight-game win against Eduard Ionescu to send China into the final due to take place later Sunday evening.
A day earlier, China rallied Romania 8-0 to wrap up their second phase campaign.
In the mixed doubles, Lin and Kuai Man beat Andrei Istrate and Diaconu in three straight games. Then In the women's singles, world No.2 Wang met some challenges from Andreea Dragoman in the first game but managed to win it 15-13, before she took the next two frames to lead 6-0. In the men's singles, world No.5 Liang Jingkun beat Darius Movileanu 2-0 to help China wrap up the match 8-0.