WTT Yokohama Champions: Xiang Peng Faces Zhang Benzhong, Chen Xingtong Advances to Quarterfinals
WTT Yokohama Champions: Xiang Peng Faces Zhang Benzhong, Chen Xingtong Advances to Quarterfinals 
The WTT Yokohama Champions tournament has concluded all Round of 16 matches and some Round of 8 matches. In the men’s singles Round of 16, Xiang Peng faced Russian player Sidorenko. The 24-year-old Sidorenko, a left-handed penhold player, represented Russia in the Youth Olympics in 2018 and won the U19 men’s doubles gold and team silver at the 2021 World Youth Championships. He also claimed the men’s singles title at the recent World University Games. In a recent major tournament in the USA, he defeated players like Duda, Zhang Benzhong, Shinozuka Daido, and Moregard, ultimately finishing as the runner-up. In this match, Xiang Peng played steadily, winning the next two games 11:9 and 11:8 after the initial 1:1 draw, securing a 3:1 victory. Xiang Peng expressed satisfaction with his performance: “I was in a very good mental state, didn’t feel too much pressure, and played the way I wanted. I actually played against him in the World Youth Championships when I was younger, and I found his style quite uncomfortable. I think we are evenly matched.” In the upcoming Round of 8, Xiang Peng will face Japanese player Zhang Benzhong, who won his previous match against Hayashi 3:0. Xiang Peng said, “I will go all out and play each point to the best of my ability.” 
Chen Yuanyu also successfully advanced to the Round of 16. In his match against French player Simon, Chen Yuanyu took the first game 11:5 and then seized a key opportunity in the second game, winning 12:10 to establish a strong lead. He went on to win the third game 11:2, securing a 3:0 victory. After the match, Chen Yuanyu said, “I was well-prepared and performed normally on the court. I felt he had a good touch and strong mid-to-long range ability in previous encounters, but today he didn’t play many impressive shots. The key is to focus on yourself and not dwell too much on your opponent’s ‘miracle shots’; instead, concentrate on how to handle the next point.” Chen Yuanyu will next face South Korean player Jang Woo-jin, who won his Round of 16 match against Karlberg. Chen Yuanyu stated, “I have lost to Jang Woo-jin twice last year, so I need to adopt the right attitude and fight hard against him, especially in the first three strokes.” 
In the evening, the Round of 8 matches began with Chen Xingtong and Chen Yi taking the stage. Chen Xingtong defeated French player Pauline Chasselin 3:0. After a period of mutual testing, Chen Xingtong gradually gained the upper hand and won the first game 11:8. She didn’t give her opponent any further chances, winning the next two games 11:2 and 11:2, to advance to the women’s singles quarterfinals. “I was well-prepared for this match because the last time we played, it was very close and I was often trailing. I felt very uncomfortable then, so this time I reflected on what I did wrong and played more targeted.” Chen Xingtong believes that she did well by thoroughly analyzing the shortcomings of her previous encounter, “For example, my receive was particularly poor last time, and I was also uncomfortable in the rally phase. This time, I slightly adjusted my receiving tactics.” Regarding her current form, Chen Xingtong said, “There have been many competitions recently, leaving me with little time to recover, but all athletes are in the same situation. I just hope to recover quickly and persevere to the end of the competition.” In the quarterfinals, Chen Xingtong will face the winner between Ohtani Satsuki and Zhang An. 
Chen Yi then faced Zhang Benzhong. In the first game, the two were tied at 11-11 before Chen Yi broke through Zhang’s middle and won two consecutive points to take the game 13:11. She continued her momentum to win the second game 11:9. However, in the third game, Zhang Benzhong picked up the pace and won 11:5 to level the match. In the fourth game, Chen Yi was leading 9:8 when she experienced some physical issues, giving Zhang Benzhong a chance to catch up and win 12:10, tying the match at 2:2. In the deciding game, Zhang Benzhong took an early lead and eventually won 11:5, advancing to the next round and leaving Chen Yi out of the competition. 
Results for August 6 Men’s Singles Round of 16 Zhang Woo-jin (South Korea) 3:1 Karlberg (Sweden) (-8,8,9,8) Xiang Peng (China) 3:1 Sidorenko (Russia) (8,-9,9,8) Chen Yuanyu (China) 3:0 Simon (France) (5,10,2) Women’s Singles Round of 16 Ohtani Satsuki (Japan) 3:1 Hersee (Wales) (10,7,-9,5) Yeh Yi-Tien (Chinese Taipei) 3:0 Liu Yangzi (Australia) (9,6,5) Zhang An (USA) 3:1 Bajor (Poland) (8,10,-7,5) Men’s Singles Round of 8 Shinozuka Daido (Japan) 3:1 Geraldo (Portugal) (-9,6,2,10) Matsushima Kyo (Japan) 3:0 Lind (Denmark) (9,10,7) Felix (France) 3:0 Duda (Germany) (9,6,9) Women’s Singles Round of 8 Chen Xingtong (China) 3:0 Pauline Chasselin (France) (8,2,2) Zhang Benzhong (Japan) 3:2 Chen Yi (China) (-11,-9,5,10,5) August 7 Schedule (Beijing Time) Singles Round of 8 10:00 Zhu Yuling (Macau, China) vs Pesotska (Ukraine) 10:35 Lim Jonghoon (South Korea) vs Oh Junseong (South Korea) 11:10 Ohtani Satsuki (Japan) vs Zhang An (USA) 11:45 Dang Qiang (Germany) vs Kanak (USA) 12:20 Akula (India) vs Shin Yubin (South Korea) 12:55 Wang Yidi (China) vs Zheng Yijing (Chinese Taipei) 16:30 Xiang Peng (China) vs Zhang Benzhong (Japan) 17:30 Hayashi Hanae (Japan) vs Yeh Yi-Tien (Chinese Taipei) 18:05 Chen Yuanyu (China) vs Zhang Woo-jin (South Korea) 18:40 Kuai Man (China) vs Szocs (Romania) 19:15 Darc (Slovenia) vs Alex (France) 
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