by Ian Marshall, Editor

At the start of the contest, the opening two games suggested the outcome may be a repeat of one year earlier. Chen Xingtong started like an express train; the level of her play quite breathtaking as the Olympic and World champion was forced into the passive role.

“Fast that’s normal for Chen Xingtong, it’s what I expected; from the start of the third game I played with more spin, more rotation. Last year when I lost it was my first tournament after a six month break and I wasn’t fully fit; now my body is in good shape.” Ding Ning

Success for Ding Ning as status anticipated, it was the same in the remaining second round Women’s Singles matches in the lower half of the draw. Colleague Liu Shiwen, the no.2 seed, beat German qualifier, Petrissa Solja (11-7, 12-10, 17-15, 11-9); Japan’s Kasumi Ishikawa, the no.4 seed, overcame Hong Kong’s Lee Ho Ching, the no.14 seed (11-6, 11-4, 11-9, 11-8).

However, the performance of the evening was that executed by Kasumi Ishikawa’s colleague, Mima Ito, the no.7 seed; in a full distance seven games duel, decided by the minimum two point margin, she accounted for Singapore’s Feng Tianwei, the no.11 seed (2-11, 9-11, 12-10, 11-6, 5-11, 11-5, 11-9).

“I tried not to think about the stress during the match. Instead I focused on taking point by point waiting for my opponent to miss and waiting for the right moment to strike.” Mima Ito

At the quarter-final stage Kasumi Ishikawa meets Ding Ning; Mima Ito opposes Liu Shiwen; the quarter and semi-final matches will be played on Saturday 3rd November.