Sun Yingsha’s WTT Finals Hong Kong Campaign Ends Abruptly Amidst Injury Concerns
Hong Kong – The WTT Finals Hong Kong witnessed a dramatic turn of events on Saturday, as world number one Sun Yingsha, a formidable Olympic and world champion, was forced to withdraw from her singles semi-final match due to an apparent left ankle injury. This marked the first time in her illustrious career that the top-ranked player had to retire mid-match.
The double heartbreak for Sun and her Chinese contingent was compounded later in the evening. Teaming up with her Olympic and world champion partner Wang Chuqin in the mixed doubles final, the formidable duo suffered a resounding defeat. They were swept aside by the South Korean pair of Lim Jong-hoon and Shin Yu-bin, with the scoreline reading 11-9, 11-8, 11-6 in favour of the Koreans at the Hong Kong Coliseum. This victory represented a significant career-first for the world No. 2 Korean pair, who had never before bested their Chinese counterparts.
Lim Jong-hoon, speaking after the mixed doubles final, acknowledged Sun’s injury. “I would like to thank each and every athlete that played until the end [despite carrying an injury],” he stated, implicitly referring to Sun. He also commended the performance of both Wang and Sun, noting, “Every player including Wang and Sun played very well today, so thank you for their performance today.” Shin Yu-bin echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the importance of athlete well-being: “It’s very important to have good conditions, so I hope every athlete plays without injuries and plays happily.”
The singles semi-final match involving Sun Yingsha was the first of the evening session. Sun, who had held the top spot in the world rankings for an impressive 178 consecutive weeks leading up to the tournament, made the difficult decision to leave the court after five games had been played. Her opponent, Kuai Man, ultimately advanced to Sunday’s final with a 4-2 victory.
Kuai Man, ranked fourth in the world, appeared to be the first to notice that something was amiss, even before Sun requested her initial medical timeout. “In the third game, when Sun was leading 9-5, I could sense that she didn’t feel so good,” Kuai revealed after the match. “But I don’t know the details about her injury; I know the same information as everyone else.”
Following Kuai’s strong comeback to win the third game, Sun made a second request for a medical timeout. Upon her return to the table, the world No. 1 required ice packs and another medical timeout in the subsequent games before ultimately retiring from the match. The last documented instance of Sun requiring a medical timeout was in February 2023, during a national team selection tournament for the Durban World Championships, where she still managed to defeat Chen Xintong 3-0.
Kuai Man is now set to face the reigning champion Wang Manyu in the final. Wang secured her spot by comprehensively defeating her compatriot Chen Yi 4-0 in the second semi-final.
Harimoto Aims for WTT Finals Hong Kong Title
In the men’s singles event, Japan’s Tomokazu Harimoto is now just one victory away from reaching his fourth final at this prestigious year-end tournament. He achieved this milestone by narrowly defeating Felix Lebrun of France in a thrilling seven-game encounter. Harimoto, who held a 3-1 lead, had to endure a decider to overcome the young French talent for the first time in their five career meetings. The hard-fought match concluded with a 12-14, 11-8, 12-10, 11-3, 8-11, 7-11, 11-9 victory for Harimoto, lasting 52 minutes.
The world No. 5 Harimoto expressed optimism about his semi-final opponent on Sunday, Lin Shidong, given his superior 5-1 head-to-head record against him. “There’s only the winner’s trophy in my eyes after finishing second three times,” stated the 22-year-old from Sendai. “A runner-up finish was fine but I’m not satisfied. The only result I can be satisfied with is the championship. This is my fifth attempt, and I must win this time.”
The other men’s semi-final will feature the reigning three-time champion Wang Chuqin against Truls Moregard. The men’s singles final is also scheduled to take place on Sunday, with a start time of 8:30 pm.
