Vladimir Sidorenko knocked the world No 1 out of WTT Champions Montpellier on Thursday, beating Sora Matsushima 12-10, 9-11, 11-8, 11-6 in the last match of day three, as the defending women's champion, Wang Yidi, and Japan's Miwa Harimoto both won in straight games.
Matsushima, the top seed, was the last Japanese man left in the tournament. Shunsuke Togami lost to Truls Moregard earlier in the evening and Hiroto Shinozuka went out to Hugo Calderano in the afternoon, a day after Tomokazu Harimoto's defeat by Simon Gauzy.
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Matsushima's exit
The 19-year-old had game point at 10-9 in the first game, but Sidorenko won the next three points to take it 12-10. Matsushima levelled at 11-9 and led 4-1 in the third, only for Sidorenko to catch him at 8-8 and win the last three points. In the fourth Sidorenko went 8-1 up and closed it out 11-6 after 30 minutes 32 seconds.
Sidorenko, 24 and ranked 19th, had already beaten Darko Jorgic, the 11th seed, on Wednesday. Matsushima had needed an 11-2 deciding game to get past Germany's Dang Qiu in the first round. Sidorenko meets Calderano in the quarter-finals on Saturday.
Jang wins the day's longest match
South Korea's Jang Woojin beat Taiwan's Lin Yun-Ju, the fifth seed and world No 6, 9-11, 11-9, 11-9, 9-11, 12-10. The match lasted 54 minutes 38 seconds, the longest of the day, and was decided on extra points in the fifth game. Jang, 31 and the ninth seed, had also needed five games to beat France's Flavien Coton on Wednesday after losing the first two.
Jang plays Liang Jingkun or Simon Gauzy in the quarter-finals. Liang, ranked 39th, began the day by beating his Chinese teammate Wen Ruibo, the 13th seed, 13-11, 11-8, 11-4.
Moregard comes from behind
Moregard, the defending champion and fourth seed, lost the first game 11-7 to Togami before winning 11-9, 14-12, 11-5. The third game, which went to extra points, turned the match. The Swede, who had reached for his shoulder during his first-round win on Tuesday, meets Lin Shidong or An Jaehyun in the last eight.
Wang Yidi's quickest win yet
Wang Yidi, the world No 4, beat Romania's Elizabeta Samara 11-6, 11-6, 11-7 in 20 minutes 20 seconds, the shortest match of the day and 18 seconds quicker than her first-round win over Dina Meshref. She plays her teammate Chen Xingtong in the quarter-finals.
Chen, the seventh seed, beat Germany's Annett Kaufmann 11-6, 8-11, 11-3, 11-8. Kaufmann, 20, had come from two games to one down to beat Japan's Satsuki Odo, the world No 13, on Wednesday, and took the second game here, but Chen won the third 11-3 and held on in the fourth.
Miwa Harimoto begins with a straight-games win
Miwa Harimoto, the third seed, beat Brazil's Bruna Takahashi 11-7, 11-8, 11-4 in 23 minutes 48 seconds. The 18-year-old has won the last three WTT Champions events and is trying to become the first player to win four in a row. She plays Lily Zhang of the US on Friday after Zhang beat Australia's Yangzi Liu 11-7, 11-6, 11-6.
Adriana Diaz of Puerto Rico, the Americas champion, beat South Korea's Joo Cheonhui, ranked 17th, 11-8, 11-8, 11-9 and plays China's Kuai Man, the fifth seed, in the evening session on Friday.
Ovtcharov and Calderano through
Dimitrij Ovtcharov, 38, won the first two games against China's Xiang Peng 11-6, 11-7, lost the next two 11-5, 11-5, and took the decider 11-7. The German meets Calderano, who beat Japan's Shinozuka 11-7, 12-10, 11-5, in the last 16.
Results in full
- Liang Jingkun (CHN) bt Wen Ruibo (CHN) 13-11, 11-8, 11-4
- Lily Zhang (USA) bt Yangzi Liu (AUS) 11-7, 11-6, 11-6
- Dimitrij Ovtcharov (GER) bt Xiang Peng (CHN) 11-6, 11-7, 5-11, 5-11, 11-7
- Miwa Harimoto (JPN) bt Bruna Takahashi (BRA) 11-7, 11-8, 11-4
- Hugo Calderano (BRA) bt Hiroto Shinozuka (JPN) 11-7, 12-10, 11-5
- Adriana Diaz (PUR) bt Joo Cheonhui (KOR) 11-8, 11-8, 11-9
- Truls Moregard (SWE) bt Shunsuke Togami (JPN) 7-11, 11-9, 14-12, 11-5
- Chen Xingtong (CHN) bt Annett Kaufmann (GER) 11-6, 8-11, 11-3, 11-8
- Jang Woojin (KOR) bt Lin Yun-Ju (TPE) 9-11, 11-9, 11-9, 9-11, 12-10
- Wang Yidi (CHN) bt Elizabeta Samara (ROU) 11-6, 11-6, 11-7
- Vladimir Sidorenko bt Sora Matsushima (JPN) 12-10, 9-11, 11-8, 11-6
Day four
The rest of the last 16 is played on Friday, starting at 11am UK time with an all-Chinese match between the top seed, Wang Manyu, and the new Asian champion, Chen Yi. Gauzy, the last Frenchman in the men's draw alongside Félix Lebrun, plays Liang at 12.45pm, Sun Yingsha meets South Korea's Shin Yubin at 12.10pm, and Félix Lebrun closes the evening session against Zhou Qihao at 7.15pm. Read the day four preview.
