Lim Jong-hoon (13th, Korea Exchange) of the men’s table tennis team narrowly lost to world number one Pan Zhen-dong (China) at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Champions.
In the men’s singles semifinals of the WTT Champions held in Xinxiang, China on the 14th, Lim Jong-hoon lost 3-4 (8-11 6-11 11-5 10-12 11-8 11-6 9-11) following a bloody battle with Pan Zhen-dong for 1 hour and 53 minutes. lost to
Lim Jong-hoon, who was the first Korean player to reach the semifinals of the WTT Champions, played well once morest the world’s strongest Pan Zhen-dong, but unfortunately failed to advance to the final.
In the round of 16, Lim Jong-hoon advanced to the semifinals by beating Tomokazu Harimoto (Japan), who was ranked third in the world, and Alexis Lebrun (France), who ranked 22nd, in the quarterfinals.
He struggled with Pan Zhendong’s various attacks in the early stages, and the game score was 0-2.
He changed the atmosphere by taking 3 games 11-5, and lost 4 games to deuce, but did not back down. He caught games 5 and 6 in a row and led the game to the final 7 games.
Game 7 was also played on thin ice, but it was pushed back in the back judgement in a tight flow with a score of 9-9. In the last minute, he might not block the opponent’s attack and unfortunately gave up the game.
Meanwhile, the WTT Champions is a singles-only tournament. It is a series that gives the third highest ranking points in the WTT following Grand Smash, which is a major tournament, and Cup Finals, which is a match of kings.
In the final, the Chinese players decide the winner.
Pan Zhendong battles Liang Jinkun (seventh) for the men’s singles championship, and Sun Yingsha (first place) and Wang Yidi (third place) meet in the women’s singles final.
