PANJIM: Teenage power was on full display at Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium in Taleigao on day five of the WTT Star Contender Goa, even as Indian hopes were snuffed out with both Manika Batra and Sutirtha Mukherjee going down in their round of 16 matches.
First, Chinese 17-year-old Lin Shidong took out giant-killing Korean Cho Daeseong 3-2 (9-11,11-5,11-9,11-5,11-4). Later, 14-year-old Japanese sensation Miwa Harimoto reached two finals and the women’s singles quarters, before 16-year-old French talent Felix Lebrun packed off Swedish world number 4 Truls Moregard 3-1(11-7,11-8,7-11,11-7) to confirm teenagers' day.
Sutirtha Mukherjee and Manika Batra, the only Indian hopes, bowed out of the women’s singles in the last 16 stage. Sutirtha came up well-short against the experience and guile of Portuguese Fu Yu in her last 16 match. The veteran with the pen-hold grip pulled off a 3-0 (11-5,11-7,11-5) win to move to the quarters. This was the second time Sutirtha has lost to Fu.
Manika was up against Qian Tanyi of China and went down 1-3 (6-11,3-11,11-9,11-7). Manika did put up a fight even winning a close third game, but the Chinese was clearly in control of the match from the outset.
The teenaged Lin led a group of five Chinese paddlers into the men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals. Liang Jungkun made the last eight with a 3-0 (8/4/8) result against Hungarian Bence Majoros. He will meet countryman Lin Gaoyuan , who defeated Swede Kristian Karlsson 3-2 (8-11,11-7,9-11,11-6,11-7) in a dogfight.
In a battle of two Chinese in the women’s singles, top seeded Wang Yidi beat Kuai Man 3-1(11-9,11-3,10-12,11-3) to join compatriot Qian in the last eight.
The day also belonged to 14-year-old Japanese sensation Miwa Harimoto, the younger sibling of men’s world number four Tomakazu Harimoto, as she made both the mixed and women’s doubles finals and also made it through to the women’s singles quarter-finals. She won the singles last 16 match over higher ranked Chen Szu-Yu of Chinese Taipei 3-1:11-8,10-12,11-5,14-12.
Miwa partnered Shunsuke Togami to storm into the finals of the mixed doubles, blanking the French pair of Emmanuel Lebesson and Jia Nan Yuan 3-0 (11-9,13-11,11-8). However, Miwa’s elder brother Tomokazu partnering world number six Hina Hayata, was beaten by Koreans Jang Woojin and Jeon Jihee 2-3 (11-6,11-9,8-11,8-11,8-11).
Miwa then also made the women’s doubles final along with Miyu Nagasaki, when they beat the Swedish pair of Linda Bergstrom and Christina Kallberg 11-5,12-10,11-2. They will meet the Chinese Taipei pair of Cheng-I-Ching and Li Yu-Jhun, who were 3-2 (9-11,11-4,11-7,6-11,11-7) semi-final winners over Koreans Choi Hyojoo and Lee Zion.
Miwa’s mixed doubles partner Shunzuke Togami, also made it to two finals. In the men’s doubles he partnered Yukiya Uda to defeat Koreans Jang Woojin and Lim Jonghoon 3-2 (11-5,3-11,11-3,6-11,11-8). Togami and Uda will meet fourth seeded Koreans An Jaehyun and Cho Seungmin, who went through with a 3-1 (11-7,5-11,11-8,11-6) victory over yet another Japanese pair, Yuto Kizukuri and Mizuki Oikawa.
Among the other winners of the day was yet another popular teenager, the Japanese 19-year-old world number four Tomokazu Harimoto, who carried on his rousing form in the tournament to dispatch Simon Gauzy of France in three straight games and take his place in the quarters. Also going through to the last eight in the men’s singles was Chinese Taipei’s world number eight Lin Yun-Ju and Koreans, Jang Woojin and An Jaehyun.
In the women’s singles German world number 10 Ying Han, moved to the last eight with a comprehensive 3-0 (11-9,11-2,12-10) win over Thai qualifier Suthasini Sawettabut. Meanwhile world number 11 Xiaoxin Yang of Monaco had to come from two games down to beat China’s Liu Weishan 3-2 (9-11,9-11,11-8,14-12,11-7) to move to the quarters. Also making it through was Miyu Hirano of Japan and Cheng-I-Ching of Chinese Taipei