China defeat South Korea 8-1 to claim ITTF Mixed Team World Cup title

China beat South Korea 8-1 in the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Mixed Team World Cup final in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on Sunday, retaining the tournament title.

The hosts' ace pair Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha appeared in the first match of the mixed doubles against Cho Dae-seong and Shin Yu-bin. In order to set a smooth tone for their side in the battle, both duos gave their best from the beginning. In a closley fought match, the first game ended 11-9 for Wang and Sun. Cho and Shin then fought back in a tug of war in the second, claiming it 19-17 to tie the match 1-1.

The Chinese pair showed great aggression in the third game, breaking the opponents' rhythm from the start before clinching it 11-4 for their team to lead 2-1 in the gold medal contest.

Wang Manyu was picked to play second in the women's singles match against South Korea's Kim Na-yeong. Kim's signature service lost its magic in front of Wang who secured a quick win of 11-3, 11-7, 11-2 to extend China's lead to 5-1. World No. 2 Wang has not conceded any of the 21 games in the seven singles matches she has played at the World Cup.

China's Lin Shidong faced Oh Jun-sung in the men's singles match next. Lin first staged a comeback win 11-6 in the first game and then claimed the second 11-4, placing his side one game away from the trophy.

Having no way to retreat, Oh began the third game 3-0, but Lin soon calmed down after calling a timeout, quickly clearing his deficit. The competition went all the way to 6-6, but Lin made his move to score four straight points for the match point. As Oh hit the ball out of bounds, Lin pocketed the win for China to defend their championship.