Scottish hopes end

Semi-finalist just under a year ago in Lagos, for Scotland’s Gavin Rumgay, it was farewell one round earlier in Pyongyang. The no.3 seed, he was beaten in five games by Iran’s Amir Hossein Hodaei (11-5, 11-9, 5-11, 12-10, 12-10).

Amir Hossein Hodaei now faces An Ji Song, the no.2 seed, in the penultimate round; he withstood a spirited recovery by DPR Korea colleague, Kim Ok Chan (11-8, 11-7, 15-13, 7-11, 14-16, 14-12).

Amin unable to progress

Qualifier, Kim Song II halted Iran’s promising youngster Amin Ahmadian in his tracks as the DPR Korea man won the quarter-final 4-0 (11-8, 11-7, 11-7, 11-8). Without breaking a sweat, Kim was imperious and knew his opponent inside out. It was a classy display from the host nation’s favourite and the 17 year old Amin could not do much about it.

In the penultimate round, Kim Song Il meets colleague Ham Yu Song, the no.4 seed; he booked his place courtesy of a quarter-final win against Ri Jong Sik (9-11, 11-9, 11-13, 11-7, 11-3, 12-10), also from DPR Korea.

Kim Nam sees off friend Ri Hyon

The attacking shakehand grip of DPR Korea’s Kim Nam Hae was too good for her compatriot Ri Hyon Sim as the two had a great duel for a place in the semi-final.

Kim had the upper hand throughout, despite dropping two games to Ri’s competitive play. The power in her shots in due course grew too much for Ri to handle, as Kim took the match 4-2.

Only one winner in battle of the Kims

Defending Champion Kim Song I kept her 2019 campaign going strong as she soundly defeated compatriot Kim Sol Song.

The World #17 Kim Song I took no chances and was relentless in her approach. Kim Sol Song had to deal with her national colleague’s defensive returns on the edge of the table at every point. Eventually, Song I managed to wrap up the match in straight games (11-8, 11-8, 11-8, 11-7).

Ham-Cha win Gold in an epic showdown

“Down to the wire” would be the perfect description of this final between two host nation duos. Ham Yu Song and Cha Hyo Sim needed a very hectic last game to win the Gold medal versus An Ji Song and Kim Nam Hae (12-10, 10-12, 11-6, 7-11, 13-11).

In this see-saw of a final, Ham and Cha must have felt like they were facing their own shadows as An and Kim came back after every point and every game. In the decider itself, An and Kim leveled up the scores to 10-10 before Ham and Cha dug deep to find a very difficult, but deserved winner.

Feng wins the battle of Chinese Taipei

Breaking the norm in Pyongyang, there was all-Chinese Taipei final contested as Feng Yi-Hsin faced off against Huang Yan-Cheng.

It was not quite the story the scoreboard told, as Feng won in straight games. Huang made life difficult for his national teammate, pushing him to the limit and making every point count. It just happened to be Feng’s day as he claimed a 11-7, 12-10, 11-4 victory.

Pyon shines to take Gold

In a match that will only excite fans for the future, DPR Korea’s Pyon Song Gyong claimed the Gold over compatriot Cha Su Yong in a hotly contested final 3-2 (11-13, 11-9, 11-5, 9-11, 11-7).

Both teenagers were at it from the beginning, not leaving any room for the other to exploit. However, after winning a game each the shakehand grip of Pyon allowed her to play for faster shots on the recovery, pushing Cha into a defensive setup. It was a long return from Cha at the end which gave Pyon the final point towards glory.

Feng and Tai fail to prevent all-hosts final

Chinese Taipei’s Feng Yi-Hsin and Tai Ming-Wei could not stop the DPR Korea juggernaut as An Ji Song and Ro Hyon Song came out on top in their semifinal clash (11-6, 11-8, 7-11, 11-8).

Despite taking a game, Feng and Tai could not return the intensity at which An and Ro were coordinating in their shots.  This meant Ham Yu Song and Ri Kwang Myong will now face their compatriots for the gold tomorrow.

Doval-Ri make finals after thriller

The only European left in the competition made it to the finals with her host nation partner in stunning fashion, as Ilka Doval and Ri Hyon Sim delved deep into their expertise and defeated DPR Korea’s Ko Su Yong and Ryu II Gyong 3-2 (9-11, 12-10, 8-11, 11-5, 11-3).

It was an exciting match up from the start, with neither pair going on the defence. Finally, it came down a combination of Doval’s impressive serve and Ri’s returns setting the pace of the game. They will now face another host pairing of Cha Hyo Sim and Kim Nam Hae who cruised against their compatriots Kim Jin Hyang and Pyon Song Gyong (11-8, 12-10, 2-11, 11-7).

A perfect morning for the hosts

DPR Korea’s athletes made sure that they will have a one-two finish at the 2019 ITTF Challenge Plus Pyongyang Open, as both their pairings made the finals after defeating duos from Chinese Taipei.

Ham Yu Song and partner Cha Hyo Sim started strong and kept going as they won 3-0 versus Tai Ming-Wei and Yu Hsiu-Ting (11-8, 11-3, 11-7). On the other table, An Ji Song and Kim Nam Hae did not flinch after dropping the first game to Feng Yi-Hsin and Cai Fong-En, and roared back into the match to clinch a 3-1 win (12-14, 11-7, 11-6, 11-2).

Day two commences

Look below for the day’s fixture schedule and make sure to watch along live with itTV: