Grapevine

Aruna, world No. 1 out of WTT China Smash

To reach the Round of 32 of the tournament with $2m prize money, which runs from September 26 to October 6, Aruna defeated Benedek Olah of Finland 3-1 (13-11, 11-5,12-10, 11-7) in the round of 64.

Another shocking result saw World No. 1 Wang Chuqin’s hopes of completing a sweep of this season’s WTT Grand Smash singles titles dashed after he succumbed to a shock round of 32 exit at the hands of Anders Lind 3-1 (13-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-7).

Taking home the Men’s Singles honours at Singapore Smash and Saudi Smash earlier this season, Wang entered Tuesday’s showdown off the back of 13 straight singles wins at WTT Grand Smash level and was heavily backed to make it 14 in a row. But Lind had other plans.

Having recently collected his second WTT Feeder Series title in Panagyurishte, he was well up for the fight on Tuesday evening, taking the game to his top-seeded opponent right from the off.

This was the first time the two players had met since their quarterfinal clash at last year’s ITTF World Championships Finals. Despite losing out on that occasion, Lind more than held his own in that matchup in Durban. But he looked like a different beast at the table, sending shockwaves around Shijingshan Shougang Park with his fearless tenacity and his willingness to think outside the box.