By Krystal Hu
Paris – Less than 24 hours after celebrating his gold medal win in the table tennis mixed doubles, China’s Wang Chuqin suffered a shock exit in the singles event on Wednesday to Sweden’s Truls Moregard, who then made it to the quarter-finals.
For the 22-year-old Moregard it was his second ever victory over a Chinese player in international competition.
“I don’t think I’ll play that well ever again,” Moregard said jokingly. “Maybe tomorrow.”
Exhausted and excited, the first-time Olympian went on to beat Taiwan’s Kao Cheng-Jui 4-1 and will face Egyptian Omar Assar in the quarter-finals.
After the 52-minute match with Wang, an ecstatic Moregard celebrated by shouting to the crowd, dancing on the floor, and drawing energy from spectators chanting his name.
“I have almost never taken a set against Wang, so it’s crazy to win here. I think how I played in the tactical game was really clever, and I didn’t feel that he had his best day at the beginning,” said Moregard.
The Swede won the first two games against world number one Wang, who then fought back to even the score. In the critical fifth game, Wang narrowed the gap from 4-8 to 8-8 but eventually lost 9-11.
Chinese and European fans were divided in their support at the packed stadium, a rare sight for Moregard.
“I love the situation. I’ve played tournaments where no one is watching, and I’m really nervous. So this atmosphere is fantastic, and I really enjoy it,” said Moregard.
Wang, who had to switch to a backup paddle after the one he had been using for the Olympics was damaged by photographers, conceded that while it briefly affected his emotions, it was not the reason for his loss.
“I think the main reason was my own poor performance, which gave Moregard more opportunities. I made a lot of mistakes, which gradually put me in a disadvantageous position,” said Wang, who will compete in the teams event for China.
Hometown favourites, the Lebrun brothers, had an opposite day. Competing one after another, the younger brother Felix resisted a resilient German, Dimitrij Ovtcharov, who fought back despite losing the first three games.
It came down to the seventh game where Felix Lebrun, with a world ranking of number five, maintained his momentum and prevailed in the long rallies, ultimately defeating the 35-year-old Tokyo bronze medallist.
His brother Alexis, who had a good start by capitalizing on Brazil’s Hugo Calderano’s errors to claim the first game, was unable to adjust his tactics and counter Calderano’s top-notch short serves, ultimately losing 4-1.
The burden of achieving China’s ambition for a gold medal sweep in table tennis now falls on Fan Zhendong, the only Chinese player left in men’s singles. Fan advanced to the next round after defeating Hong Kong’s Wong Chun Ting 4-1 in the morning and then crushed American Kanak Jha, who achieved a personal best by making it to the round of 16.
Sun Yingsha, who won her first Olympic gold medal a day earlier, also enjoyed two straightforward victories, cruising into the quarter-finals alongside her teammate Chen Meng.
(Reporting by Krystal Hu in Paris; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
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