In the third round of the group stage of the 2024 ITTF Men's and Women's World Cup in Macau, China, a key battle will be ushered in, with national table tennis player Kuo Man facing South Korean Chinese player Tian Zhixi.
Tian Zhixi drew 2-2 with Kuo Man and advanced to the top 16 of the women's singles. Kuo Man became the first player in national table tennis to miss the top 16.
Tian Zhixi is in the 13th group of women's singles, in addition to Kuo Man, there is also Hong Jianfang in the same group.
In the first round, Tian Zhixi swept Australia's Hong Jianfang 4-0. In the second round, Kuo Man won 4-0 against Hong Jianfang. Hong Jianfang was out early. Kuo Man and Tian Zhixi competed for the first place in the group.
Tian Zhixi is 31 years old, 11 years older than Kuo Man. Tian Zhixi's world ranking is higher than that of Kuaiman, and his competition experience is much stronger than Kuaiman. Not only that, Tian Zhixi's recent form has been very good, and he has defeated the bitter master Misei Ito. This greatly increased Tian Zhixi's self-confidence. The veteran has recently risen and has a second spring.
In this game, Tian Zhixi played at a high level again. She plays aggressively, with a lot of confidence and is determined to win. On the contrary, Kuaiman played timidly and did not play smoothly enough.
In the first game, Tian Zhixi made a 3:1 start. Kuaiman chased to 4:5 and only trailed by 1 point. Tian Zhixi scored 6 points in a row and won the game 11:4. The situation is not in favor of Kueman. It was very bad for her to open so much in the first game.
In the second game, Tian Zhixi made a 5:0 start. Is Kuoman sleepwalking? That's not her level. Kuaiman chased 2 points. Tian Zhixi took another 8:3 lead. After both sides scored 3 points each, Tian Zhixi won the second game 11:6.
The big score Tian Zhixi took a 2-0 lead. And in the first two games, Tian Zhixi scored 12 points more than Kuo Man. Unless Kuo Man wins two games in a row, Tian Zhixi's score must be very low before he has a chance to reverse the promotion.
In the third game, Tian Zhixi made a 6:0 start. Kuoman is completely out of shape. Although this is the first time that Kuoman has participated in the World Cup, she is already 20 years old, and she is not young. A lot of players are playing at her age. What's more, she is valued by national table tennis, has participated in many international competitions, and has a lot of experience.
Kuaiman chased 3 points in a row and narrowed the difference. Tian Zhixi called a timeout. Kuaiman continued to exert his strength and chased the score to 7 draws. Tian Zhixi won the game point again with 10:8. Kuo Man finally woke up and scored four points in a row to pull back a game at 12:10. However, Tian Zhixi scored 10 points in this game, and Kuo Man had no chance.
In the fourth game, Kuo Man made a 3:0 start and led Tian Zhixi 5:1. After each side scored three points, Kuamistan released three points and won another game 11-4.
The two sides fought 2-2. However, it is a small score, and Tian Zhixi has the advantage. Therefore, Tian Zhixi advanced to the top 16 of women's singles.
Kuo Man became the first player in national table tennis to miss the top 16. Kuaiman's technology is still a little worse. She's really going to work hard. The coaching staff attaches so much importance to her, but she is not angry.