Group favourite responds but not out of the woods yet

Taking time to find her footing, Jeon is starting to show signs of improvement in her meeting with Eerland as the Korean takes games three and four, but only by the narrowest of margins (13-11, 13-11). However, Jeon, the highest seeded player in group action, isn’t level for long with Eerland moving ahead yet again after enjoying the better showing of the two in game five (11-7).

Positive opening from Egyptian

The sole African representative here at the Women’s World Cup, Egypt’s Dina Meshref is holding her own against Korean defender Suh Hyowon and actually enjoys the brighter start of the two. A top draw display in game one (11-5) hands Meshref an early lead, but credit goes to Suh for pulling off an immediate response in game two (11-3). All square at one game apiece here.

RESULT: Wu Yue 4-3 Petrissa Solja (11-5, 11-4, 11-7, 9-11, 8-11, 3-11, 11-9)

We have our first major upset of the Dishang 2020 ITTF Women’s World Cup here on day one with Wu Yue upstaging Petrissa Solja in a seven-game thriller. Despite dropping three games on the bounce, Wu never looked in doubt in game seven and didn’t pass up the opportunity when match point came her way. It has finished 4-3 to the United States’ competitor.

Britt Eerland causing a stir

Dutch fans will be feeling very excited right now with their player Britt Eerland looking excellent in the opening stages of her tie with Korea Republic’s Jeon Jihee. Two games played, two games won by the European (11-7, 15-13) – how will this one pan out?

Fighting back

With game three also going in Wu’s direction (11-7), there is no more room for error for Solja. The German ups the ante and suddenly begins to see things going in her favour, prevailing in games four and five (11-9, 11-8) to pull herself back into the match.

Wu Yue off to incredible start!

What a potential story we have developing here with United States’ Wu Yue, seeded 18th, currently leading German no.11 seed and 2015 ITTF Women’s World Cup bronze medallist Petrissa Solja 2-0 (11-5, 11-4)!

RESULT: Margaryta Pesotska 4-2 Lily Zhang (15-13, 11-6, 11-5, 7-11, 3-11, 12-10)

Another result to confirm here in Group 2 with Pesotska earning a commendable 4-2 victory over Zhang. Trailing 8-10 and staring at two game point opportunities for her US counterpart, Pesotska refuses to let another ball past her and four points later it is the Ukraine player who claims the win.

Lifeline for US star

Talk about a shift in momentum! Lily Zhang appears to be finding her rhythm now, achieving a higher success rate with her attempts. A strong outing in game four keeping the tie alive (11-7), Zhang performs better still in the following game, racing into a 9-0 lead. The game eventually concludes in Zhang’s favour by an eight point margin (11-3) to reduce the overall deficit from three to just one.

RESULT: Adriana Diaz 4-1 Zhang Mo (11-5, 7-11, 11-2, 11-9, 12-10)

Diaz is the first player to strike victory in Weihai, needing just the five games to see off fellow Pan American Zhang. The result also marks Diaz’s first win at the ITTF Women’s World Cup!

Narrow margins on table 2

Adriana Diaz and Zhang Mo are keeping one another honest on table 2 with very little separating the two. Off to the slower start, Zhang bounces back with a successful outing in game two (11-7) but back-to-back game wins for Diaz (11-2, 11-9) sees the Puerto Rican start to assert some authority over her opponent.

An update from table 1 and the pressure is really beginning to mount on the shoulders of Lily Zhang here with Margaryta Pesotska going from strength to strength. It’s now 3-0 to the European player (15-13, 11-6, 11-5).

Marathon game marks return

What a tense, yet exciting start to the action here in Weihai with Lily Zhang and Margaryta Pesotska’s opening game going right down to the wire. Down 7-3, Zhang begins to grow into the contest and goes on to reverse fortunes with two game point opportunities. Pesotska narrowly holds on (15-13) to move ahead.

On table 2 it’s Adriana Diaz who establishes the early advantage over Zhang Mo (11-5).

And we’re underway in Weihai

Here we go, after months away, international table tennis is back! The first contests of the day sees United States’ Lily Zhang and Ukraine’s Margaryta Pesotska meet on table 1, while Puerto Rico’s Adriana Diaz and Canada’s Zhang Mo do battle over on table 2.

What’s coming your way?

All four groups will be decided on day one with the top two players from each group extending their stay in the race. Here’s a look ahead to the day’s fixture line-up:

It’s time to #RESTART!

Good morning and welcome to day one of the Dishang 2020 ITTF Women’s World Cup and with it the start of the #RESTART series.

Today’s action sees 13 of the 21 players in Weihai contest the group phase of the event with eight positions in the Round of 16 on the line. You can read up on the draw here.