Sun Yingsha and Wang Chuqin Both Escape by the Skin of Their Teeth at the World Cup
The Macao World Cup is reaching its climax. Even Wang Manyu’s attacking-vs-chopper battle against Hashimoto Honoka was a riveting watch — let alone Hugo’s incredible aggressive backhand, Wang Chuqin’s princely style, and the two near-defeats of Sun Yingsha and Wang Chuqin.
1. Sun Yingsha 4-3 Hannah Goda
Normally, the gap in level between these two should produce something like 4-1. Even 4-2 would be Hannah overachieving. But 4-3, with Hannah actually leading 3-2 — nobody saw that coming.
Sun Yingsha: S968, Neo National Blue Hurricane, Hurricane 8-20 National Special
Hannah: Cyber 6, both sides DNA Platinum (hardness M)
Understanding your opponent starts with understanding their equipment. Commentator Hou Yingchao pointed out during the match: why is this ball so short? Because Hannah’s sponge is soft. I knew she had been using hardness M on both sides for the past two years — I thought at the time that was pretty soft. I checked again recently; still M.
But soft rubbers are great for counter-hitting — fast, penetrating power. In this match Hannah scored a lot of points with backhand counter-hits — straight-line drives, high-speed and flat arc — which Sun Yingsha wasn’t fully adjusted to.
On the other hand, Sun Yingsha’s serves were too monotonous. Hannah’s forehand short receive is a weak point. But you can’t serve the exact same thing from start to finish with almost no variation. At the root, I think it comes from putting herself on a pedestal — feeling her level is obviously above her opponent’s — and just going through the motions.
This is the World Cup, not an ordinary match. WTT runs such a packed calendar these days that even at the World Cup, players may not always be able to get themselves into the right gear.
Hannah is still young, and at the critical moments Sun Yingsha’s forehand proved solid enough.
2. Wang Chuqin 4-3 Darko Jorgic
If Sun Yingsha’s match was a near-escape, Wang Chuqin’s was more accurately — enough grit to get through. Normally it should have been 4-1 as well. The first game was won too easily; the second saw inexplicably too many unforced errors.
In game 3, Darko clipped the net and the edge several times in a row, changing the momentum and giving him a glimpse of hope against Wang Chuqin. His rhythm came alive, and his defense improved.
I have to say, Hurricane 3 against seamless balls is genuinely not ideal. It doesn’t have speed to begin with, and then with seamless balls the spin drops further. That’s a real equipment disadvantage.
Wang Chuqin: Q968, Neo National Blue Hurricane, Hurricane 8-20 National Special Darko Jorgic: Tibhar Darko Jorgic (asymmetric structure), K2, MX-P Infinity
Game 4: Wang Chuqin should have had a serve advantage, but instead struggled to return Darko’s backhand serves. And Darko’s backhand power is just massive. Down 1-3. The situation looked dire — but knowing Darko from experience, he always short-circuits when leading.
At the 2024 WTT Sweden Open, Darko beat Harimoto Tomokazu 3-2. Just look at the scores: 11-3, 11-9, 2-11, 1-11, 11-5. Yes, that’s exactly how Darko works. So even with Wang Chuqin down 1-3, I felt a comeback was possible.
Game 5: Wang Chuqin down 2-4, then the turning point — he ripped off his kinesiology tape. Looks like he decided to go all in.
And his tactical thinking got clearer. First, on return of serve, try to flip — don’t push short or chop long, neither works well. Second, don’t put too much power into topspin loops — that actually makes it easier for Darko to defend. What matters is continuity, keep attacking Darko’s middle.
I have to admit, Wang Chuqin won me over in this match too. If you’re wondering what “MZT” stands for — it’s actually the pinyin initials for a blade I’m releasing at the end of the month: Mozaite.