World Championships

USA Women at the Worlds

By Doru Gheorghe, USA Women’s Coach

USA Results

Our trip to China started on April 24 with a 4-day camp at Gao Jun’s club, East China University of Science and Technology, located in Shanghai.  Lily Yip helped us find sponsors for this camp.  The Double Fish Company, through its chairman Xu Gao Xing and the Xu Shao Fa Company, fully sponsored our national team training.  (See picture of them with this article.)  I would like to extend our thanks to Lily Yip, the Double Fish Company and Xu Shao Fa, for their wish to again sponsor the USA National Team for a one-week training camp in Guang Dong before the 2008 World Championships.  I would also like to thank Gao for arranging for the U.S. team to train at her club.

The training camp was very well organized, with the hotel and an impeccable venue in the University campus and lots of Chinese practice partners.  Besides USA and Chinese players, there were players from both Koreas and Japan.

Women’s Singles

Due to the fact that Lily Yip hadn’t played in International competition in the last two years, she was not ranked and she was the only USA player to play in the qualifying rounds.  She was drawn in the group with Geta Zvetlana (UZB), Alsadig Marwa (SUD) and Silir Rovani (INA).  Lily won by walkover against Geta Zvetlana and Alsadig Marwa, and lost (9, -7,10,10,7) to Silir Rovani.  Lily had a good chance to win the third and fourth games, but she missed too many backhand blocks and a couple of her own serves.  By finishing second in the group Lily didn’t qualify for the main draw. 

In the first round Tawny played Kim Hyang Mi (PRK), 2004 Olympic Games silver medalists, and lost, 7,10,9,4.  Tawny played very well but the North Korean player was more experienced and more consistent in the match.

Jasna Reed played Csilla Batorfi (HUN).  Jasna lost the first two games but fought back and won the third, 11-6.  In the fourth she started very well and led 5-1, but then started waiting for Batorfi to miss and that didn’t happened.  Batorfi used her best weapon, serve and first loop, and came back and won the game, 11-6.  In the fifth game Jasna started well again, up 5-1 and aware of Batorfi’s strategy from the previous game.  Jasna went up 8-2, and won 11-8.  In the sixth game, Batorfi had the serve and won the first two points. For the next couple of points Jasna couldn’t focus and she missed some easy shots. Batorfi went up 8-2, and won the game and match, 9,3,-6,6,-8,5.

Jackie Lee did not have a very good draw, having to play Tie Yana (HKG), ranked #7 in the World.  Jackie put up a good fight and succeeded in taking a game from this experienced, high-ranked player, losing 2,5,3,-9,6.

Gao played a young player from Hong Kong, Yu Kwok See, and won easily, 5, 9,-8, 4, 3.  In the second round she played Odorova (SVK) who got angry because she couldn’t return Gao’s wide shots, and she easily won again, 4,11,2,6. 

In the third round Gao won against Singapore’s Li Jia Wei, world #7, 2004 Olympic semifinalist and the 2004 U.S. Open Women’s Singles Champion. Gao had last played her three years ago and lost that match. Gao started very well, winning the first two games with many good forehand shots and overall control of the game. In the third Gao missed a couple of serves and easy shots and Li Jia Wei went up 4-0.  Gao fought back and tied it at 6-6, and then went head to head till 8-8 … but Li won the game, 11-8.  In the next two games, Li changed strategy and played Gao more to her forehand, and won both games, 11-5.  In the sixth, Gao started very well, and led 7-3, 9-5, and 10-6, but Li deuced it, 10-10.  After a high-toss serve down the line that Li failed to return, it’s 11-10 for Gao.  During a backhand exchange, Li returns a ball high, but Gao misses the forehand smash.  However, she managed to win the game anyway, 13-11.  In the seventh, both players played very well, going head to head till 9-8 when Gao chose to change her serve, using a high-toss backhand serve that she hadn’t used before. Li missed it.  The last point was a long rally, with Li finally missing a backhand. Match to Gao, 9,7,-8,-5,-5,11,8!

In the eighths, Gao played Cao Zhen (CHN), #12 in the World.  Gao lost the first game 11-5, and it looked like the Chinese player would not be bothered by Gao’s short pips.  But Gao started to play more and more consistently, varying long and short balls, and Cao started missing.  Gao won the next three games, 11-8, 11-9, 11-4, and it looked like she was controlling the points all the time.  In the fifth and sixth games, however, Cao Zhen was more patient and consistent, making Gao move all over the table, sometimes even missing high balls.  Cao Zhen won the two games, 11-9, 11-3, forcing a seventh game.  They went head to head till 4-4 when Gao went up 6-4.  When Gao was about to serve the Chinese spectators began cheering very loudly for Cao Zhen, so Gao stepped back and waited for the crowd to stop.  And then, when the crowd was silent and Gao was ready to serve, a spectator said something in Chinese.  Gao looked back in that direction, smiled, but when she turned back to serve I could see on her face that she was determined to win.  She kept the lead the rest of the way, winning the match at -5,8,9,4,-9,-3,7.

In the quarterfinals, Gao played Lin Ling, #17 in the world and a former Chinese National team member, now playing for Hong Kong,.  Lin Ling knew Gao’s game very well and it didn’t bother her at all. She won the first two games 11-5, 11-7.  In the third Gao played more aggressively, took the lead from the beginning, and won 11-9.  This match was played just a few hours after Gao’s match against Cao Zhen, and she was very tired, but the only way to win against Lin Ling was for her to play aggressively and hit the ball hard.  In the fourth Lin Ling started very well and looked full of energy, practically jumping at each ball.  Gao missed some easy smashes early on, and Lin Ling went up 5-2.  Gao fought back to 7-7 – only to miss a high ball.  Gao tied it again, 8-8, but Lin was just too fresh and won the game 11-8.  In the fifth game, Gao again missed some easy shots, and Lin Ling, playing more and more aggressively, won the game and match, 5,7,-9,8,4. Disappointing, but still a good result for Gao to make the quarterfinals at the Worlds for the second time in a row.

Mixed Doubles   

Gao and Lupi had a good run in mixed doubles, winning in the first round against Wu Chih-Chi/Lu Yun-Feng (TPE), 10,6,5,-6,8. In the second round they play Karl Jindrak/Li Qiangbing (AUT), and win 10,8,8,4. In the round of 32 they play Werner Schlager/Liu Jia (AUT). The match was very exciting with nice rallies, comebacks and both pairs put up a very good fight.  After winning the first game 14-12, they started the second game very well, leading 6-4, 8-4, 9-4 and 10-6, but Schlager, the defending World Men’s Singles Champion, showed that he can make great shots when necessary.  He made three very good backhand shots in the row and one forehand very wide crosscourt to reach 10-10, and Austria won the game 12-10.  In the third game Gao/Lupi again started well, leading 4-2, 5-3, but the Austrian team tied it at 8, and won 11-8.  In the fourth Gao/Lupi took the lead from the beginning and kept a two-point lead till the end, winning 11-9. Gao/Lupi won the fifth easily, 11-2, to go up 3-2 in games.  They go up 3-0 in the sixth and things looked good, but we missed a couple of easy shots and it’s 3-3.  Austria then takes the lead and wins 11-8 to force the seventh.  Gao/Lupi again took the lead, 6-4, but Austria kept fighting, and after a series of very nice exchanges – and a couple of edge balls for Austria – it’s 9-9, and Austria wins the next two points, and the game and match,  -12,10,8,-9,-2,8,9.