Alkass Digital
It was nearly a day to remember for World No.14 Darko Jorgic who just fell short of victory against World No.1 Fan Zhendong in their electrifying Round of 16 battle at WTT Finals Men Doha 2023 (11-7, 7-11, 7-11, 19-17, 11-8) on Wednesday.
Jorgic couldn’t have asked for tougher opposition than the event’s 2021 champion. To add to his status, Fan, who, prior to play at the Lusail Sports Arena, had dominated both of their previous head-to-head contests, with Jorgic failing to win a single game.
Determined to change this, Jorgic got the ball rolling, showcasing his deadly backhand counter and forcing unusual errors from the World No.1, stealing the first game with an 11-7 tagline.
Despite the slow-start, Fan revved up his game and, looking more comfortable in the court, bounced back to claim the second and third games, now leading the contest 2-1.
The fourth game was nothing but excitement, as fans witnessed Jorgic save two match points to enter deuce. In an enthralling display of insane topspin exchanges, it was Jorgic who would come out on top with a mouth-watering 19:17 scoreline, forcing Fan into a deciding game.
It was neck-and-neck throughout, with both players exhibiting stellar table tennis to the very end. But true to style, it was Fan who would come up trumps, booking his spot in the quarter-finals, where he is set to face Quadri Aruna.
“I didn’t get in the zone very quickly in the first game. My performance after that is normal. The scores are very close and I’ve been trying to pull ahead. He did very well in aspects I didn’t expect today, which gave me quite some pressure,” said Zhendong.
Wang Chuqin got his campaign for a title defence underway in the vening as the Chinese saw off debutant Felix Lebrun 3-1 (11-6, 9-11, 11-6, 11-8).
It may have been a first-time meeting between the duo, but it was one which Wang had been hitting the books for.
Lebrun came to Doha after enjoying a breakthrough season which saw him pick up his maiden WTT Series title as well as cracking the Top 10 for the first time.
The study brought dividends and, despite some wobbles on the receive game at times, the World No.2 maintained a handle on the match throughout.
World No. 16, Quadri Aruna dished out one of the biggest wins of his career as he stormed to comeback victory over Brazilian Hugo Calderano.
Trailing for most the time out, Aruna was able save a match point and post a monumental 3-2 (7-11, 2-11, 11-9, 12-10, 12-10) win to move in to the quarter-finals of the men’s singles.
After the match, Aruna was a face full of smiles having pulled off a seemingly impossible feat.
“I cannot describe how it feels, but I’m very happy and excited,” he said.
Going in to the round of 16 encounter, the Nigerian trailed 0:2 in head-to-head against Calderano. History looked to be repeating as the World No.5 from Brazil stormed to a two-games lead, dropping just a total of nine points along the way.
With a dazzling display of acrobatic table tennis, Aruna landed a series of booming forehands to keep himself in the match and ultimately take the win.
With a win in the bag, Aruna will be looking to ride the wave to an even bigger upset as he faces Fan Zhendong on Thursday in the quarter-finals.
Elsewhere in the draw, Dang Qiu was able to halt a comeback attempt from Lin Shidong as the German upset the global standings to defeat World number nine 3-2 (11-9, 11-8, 7-11, 2-11, 11-8).
“It felt good. Honestly after 2-0 and it became 2-2 it didn’t feel so good anymore. I’m happy I could prevail and win this match,” said Qiu.
Despite seemingly almost let the match slip from his hands, Dang felt in good form after his first ever WTT Finals win.