Ding Ning, aged 20, the World no. seven with one ITTF Pro Tour title to her name (Kuwait in 2009) was the big winner in the Ladies Singles Quarter-Finals. Facing the World no. three Feng Tianwei (Singapore) the player who shocked the Table Tennis World by leading her country to that marvellous win over China in the 2010 World Team Championships Ding Ning turned on a sparkling display. Feng Tianwei never looked comfortable, in fact at times she looked down-right worried. She had good cause to be. Ding Ning was magnificent. She won 12-10, 11-6, 11-9, 11-8.
It is the end of the road for Kasumi Ishikawa, the 17 year-old sensation of World Table Tennis. Perhaps tired from her thrilling win in the Under 21 Ladies Singles Final half an hour earlier she was always behind against World no. six – Li Xiaoxia, a seven times Singles Champion on the ITTF Pro Tour. An inform Xiaoxia proved equally adept in the backhand to backhand rallies and her forehand looked unplayable at times. Li Xiaoxia won 4-0 (11-3, 11-3, 11-5, 11-2).
The other Semi-Finalists will be World no. one – Guo Yan, the 28 year-old World no. one and a four times ITTF Pro Tour Champion and Liu Shiwen, 19, World no. four and also a four times Pro Tour Champion. Guo Yan, is clearly very comfortable against defensive play. Park Mi Young, the Korean World no. 14 threw everything she had at her. It wasn’t enough. Guo Yan had the answers when she needed them. She won 11-5, 8-11, 11-2, 11-9, 11-7.
Liu Shiwen scored her third 4-0 win of the Tournament (she has only dropped one end so far – against Irene Ivancan (Germany)) in the last 16. Here, she cruised past the World no. 66 Moon Hyun Jung (Korea) 11-4, 11-4, 11-9, 11 – 7.
Steve Kerns