Women paddlers lose 3-2 to Japan in team event

SINGAPORE — The Republic’s hopes of at least matching their silver medal finish in the women’s table tennis team event at the 2010 Asian Games were dashed last night after a 3-2 loss to Japan in the semi-finals at the Incheon Games.

But though Singapore have secured the bronze medal in the event, the defeat could also come at a price after Singapore’s No 1 female paddler Feng Tianwei aggravated a knee injury — which she picked up in training — during the match, which could affect her performance in the women’s singles event.

“She will be a worry for the women’s singles. We will need to look at her injury and recovery and it is very dangerous,” said women’s team coach Jing Junhong.

Feng added: “I was a bit tired today as my responsibilities with the team are heavier and I had a bit of an injury, so it was difficult. I had already injured my knee during training so that was not so good.”

Despite the defeat, Jing was satisfied with the performance Singapore had put up against Japan, which will face China in the final today.

Singapore, who were without injured world No 10 Yu Mengyu, had fought back through Zhou Yihan and Feng Tianwei to level the match at 2-2. But it was not to be, as Japanese No 1 Ishikawa Kasumi came out firing and eventually triumphed over Lin Ye in four sets 11-2, 11-7, 7-11, 11-4.

“We lost today, and though it is a pity, the younger ones put up a good fight,” said Jing. “This is their first time playing in the semi-finals of a major Games. We lost 2-3, but the next time we meet, we have a chance of winning.”

The former national stalwart, who finished fourth in the women’s singles at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, believes there are many lessons that younger players such as Lin and Zhou can take away from this outing.

“Lin Ye’s last game showed that there is still a gap in her technique and skill with her opponent,” said Jing. “But for this 18-year-old to play like this, there is a lot of hope for us”.