It was semi-final sadness for Hong Kong in the Junior Girls’ Doubles event at the 2014 Chinese Taipei Junior and Cadet Open in Taipei City on Sunday 28^th September.

Minnie Soo Wai Yam and Zhu Chengzhu suffered defeat at the hands of Japan’s Rira Ishikawa and Ayane Morita (11-5, 11-5, 11-8); for Liu Qi and Mak Tze Wing it was the same fate; they lost to Chinese Taipei’s Chiu Ssu-Hua and Huang Yu-Wen (11-6, 7-11, 11-6, 11-7).

Success at the semi-final stage for Chiu Ssu-Hua and Huang Yu-Wen, it was also success in the final; they beat Rira Ishikawa and Ayane Morita to secure the title (11-8, 11-7, 11-5).

One day earlier in the Junior Girls’ Singles event; Minnie Soo Wai Yam, Mak Tze Wing and Zhu Chengdu had all suffered quarter-final defeats, whilst Liu Qi departed in round two.

Minnie Soo Wai Yam was beaten by Korea’s Kim Youjin in a close seven games duel (11-8, 11-4, 10-12, 9-11, 11-3, 5-11, 11-9); Zhu Chengzhu suffered against Japan’s Mima Ito (9-11, 11-4, 11-4, 11-8, 11-9).

Similarly, Japan’s Ayane Morita ended the progress of Mak Tze Wing (7-11, 11-9, 10-12, 11-8, 12-10, 11-2), whilst Chinese Taipei’s Huang Yu-Chia defeated Liu Qi (13-11, 12-11, 3-11, 11-9, 12-10).

Defeats for Hong Kong in the Junior Girls’ Singles event but that was not the situation for Japan. Once again, for the third occasion the title finished in the hands of Japan’s Mima Ito.

She accounted for Chinese Taipei’s Huang Yu-Chiao, the no.11 seed, in the semi-finals (11-3, 11-5, 11-1, 11-6), before proving even more devastating in the final against Korea’s Kim Youjin, the no.19 seed; a further straight games success was the outcome (11-1, 11-1, 11-6, 11-4). In the counterpart Junior Girls’ Singles semi-final, Kim Youjin had beaten Mima Ito’s colleague Ayane Morita in six games (11-6, 9-11, 11-5, 9-11, 11-3, 11-5).

Meanwhile, in the Junior Boys’ Singles event, the host association’s Liao Cheng-Ting emerged successful.

He beat colleague Yang Tai-Yi, the no.3 seed in the semi-finals (11-9, 7-11, 11-2, 11-5, 11-6) and Japan’s Ryotaro Ogata, the no.7 in the final (11-9, 7-11, 12-10, 11-5, 11-7).

In the counterpart Junior Boys’ Singles semi-final Ryotaro Ogata accounted for Liao Cheng-Ting’s colleague and increasingly arch rival, Yang Heng-Wei, the no.2 seed (9-11, 11-4, 11-8, 11-8, 17-19, 11-8).

Gold for Japan in the Junior Girls’ Singles event, it was also gold in the Junior Boys’ Doubles competition with Takuto Izumo and Yuto Kizukuri emerging successful.

In the final they beat compatriots Takahiro Mikami and Ryotaro Ogata (5-11, 11-9, 12-10, 11-3), after having overcome Chinese Taipei’s Wang Tai-Wei and Yang Heng-Wei in the penultimate round (6-11, 11-7, 11-6, 9-11, 11-6). In the adjacent semi-final, Takahiro Mikami and Ryotaro Ogata had beaten Seiya Numamura and Haruto Sato, also from Japan (5-11, 11-9, 12-10, 11-3).

Article by: ITTF - Ian Marshall