8/23/2009        2009 KAL Cup Korea Open

Japan’s 20 year old Jun Mizutani emerged as the Men’s Singles winner at the KAL Cup Korean Open in Seoul on Sunday 23rd August 2009 beating China’s Hao Shuai at the final hurdle to arrest his first ever Men’s Singles crown on the ITTF Pro Tour.

Seeded no.8, Jun Mizutani recorded a five games victory over the no.3 seed and thus for the second consecutive week, it was for Hao Shuai runners up spot in a Men’s Singles event on the ITTF Pro Tour.

The previous week he had lost to compatriot Wang Hao in Tianjin at the China Open in seven games.

In Seoul he was beaten rather more comfortably, a five games result being the order of the day.

Jun Mizutani won 14-12, 11-9, 7-11, 11-8, 12-10.

Reason for Confidence
It was the second meeting in a world ranking event between the two left handers and Jun Mizutani, despite the fact that Hao Shuai possesses a higher world ranking, must have been full of self-belief before the contest began.

The one previous meeting was in September 2007 in the Chinese city of Yangzhou, some four hours by bus from Shanghai; in the last 32 of the Men’s Singles event at the China Mobile Asian Championships, Jun Mizutani had recorded a six games victory in a contest that thrilled to crowds.

Tactics
On that occasion he cited the tactics used by Michael Maze in the most memorable of memorable matches at the Volkswagen 48th World Champions in Shanghai in 2005 when the Dane had performed the great escape, using high lobbed topspin play to effect victory.

In Yangzhou, Jun Mizutani used similar tactics but not quite to the excessive extent that Michael Maze, like Jun Mizutani left handed, had used in Shanghai.

The Japanese super talent had played more in the guise of a Jacques Secretin or Mikael Appelgren to secure victory.

Return to World Level
In Seoul just under two years later he repeated the successful tactics and underlined the comment from the recent H.I.S. World Championships that Japan is back at world level.

Belated Present
A regular participant at ITTF Pro Tour tournaments in Korea, the event has often been held during the first week of June, thus coinciding with Jun Mizutani’s birthday.

In 2009 that was not the situation but Jun Mizutani was certainly not upset ast having to wait two months for his present; the KAL Cup Korean Open Men’s Singles crown was well worth the wait.

Hao Shuai the runner up in a Men’s Singles event on the ITTF Pro Tour for the second week in a row.