S’pore paddlers on course for gold

SINGAPORE — Unbeknown to spectators inside the Singapore Indoor Stadium yesterday, Singapore national table tennis women’s doubles pair of Feng Tianwei and Yu Mengyu were locked in a fierce duel with team-mates Lin Ye and Zhou Yihan in the players’ warm-up area. Faces scrunched in deep concentration, the paddlers smashed and spun shots as if the gold medal was at stake.

And the Republic’s two women’s doubles pairs may face each other for real if things go according to plan on the second day of the SEA Games table tennis competition today.

The first two gold medals of the Games will be awarded in the table tennis men’s and women’s doubles today, and world No 4 Feng is not taking any chances. “My hope is for the two pairs (Feng and Yu, Lin and Zhou) to make the final together so that the gold and silver is won by Singapore, and that is the best result,” said the 28-year-old.

Singapore’s 10-strong table tennis squad were off to a winning start on the first day of competition yesterday, with both men’s and women’s doubles pairs notching victories to advance to today’s semi-finals.

As there is no playoff for the bronze, the result means Singapore is assured of at least four bronze medals. The semi-finals and gold medal matches for both events will be played at the Indoor Stadium today.

It was all in a day’s work for the top seeds Feng and Yu, who dispatched Thailand’s Orawan Pranang and Tamolwan Khetkhuan 11-8, 13-11, 11-6 to set up a semi-final against Malaysia’s Ho Ying and Lee Rou You.

Second seeds Lin and Zhou will face Thailand’s Nanthana Komwong and Suthasini Sawettabut today after defeating Ng Sock Khim and Angeline Tang of Malaysia 3-0 in the quarter-finals.

Men’s doubles pairs Gao Ning and Li Hu, Clarence Chew and Chen Feng are also on track for gold, with the Singaporeans eliminating both Indonesian pairs of Gilang Maulana and Akhmad Dahlan Haruri, and Gilang Ramadhan and Ficky Supit Santoso to advance to the next round.

The pressure may be on the paddlers to deliver the first golds for hosts Singapore’s 749-strong contingent at the Games, but women’s team head coach Jing Junhong is confident in her charges’ abilities.

“We must have confidence (in winning two gold) but there will still be some difficulty,” she said.“Our second women’s pair (Lin and Zhou) will face Thailand who have veteran player Nanthana who has played in many SEA Games. But they are as good as the Thais, and the result will depend on whether they can play to the best of their ability.” Low Lin Fhoong