With ITTF Mixed Team World Cup Chengdu 2024 presented by CHINA TELECOM now settling into Stage 2, the stakes continue to heighten at Sichuan Gymnasium with China keeping up an electrifying pace in its defence of the Guoliang-Sörling Trophy  

The 2023 champion hit the ground running earlier this week, and has now moved into pole position in Stage 2 after claiming another striking win in front of an excited Chengdu crowd. 

Despite dropping a game in the Mixed Doubles, Kuai Man and Lin Shidong got the ball rolling for China in Wednesdays showdown against Germany, kicking off the evening with a 2-1 victory over Yuan Wan and Cedric Meissner (11-2, 9-11, 11-8). 

Earning rapturous applause with each point she won, Sun Yingsha produced a sparkling display under the lights, outclassing Sophia Klee 3-0 (11-2, 11-6, 11-5), before Liang Jingkuns pitch perfect performance against Fanbo Meng (11-4, 11-7, 11-5) made sure of an 8-1 victory in Chinas favour. 

I feel much better today than I did yesterday, and Im slowly getting into the atmosphere of the game and focusing on every point. I think the atmosphere was very good, there were a lot of chants supporting us, so thank you very much for coming to support us. We will do our best to play every game, and I hope to present more exciting games for all of you. Sun Yingsha 

FOLLOW TOURNAMENT ACTION 

Turning heads with another impressive day at the office, Romania added another valuable win to its tally on Day 4, taking down France 8-3.  

There were a number of highlights for Romania to celebrate over the course of the match, with Adina Diaconus 3-0 win over Audrey Zarif amongst the evenings standout moments (11-8, 11-2, 11-6).  

Eduard Ionescus 2-1 success against Thibault Poret (12-10, 11-7, 6-11) put Romania on the cusp of an outstanding victory, and it didnt take long for the team to convert as Romania banked a decisive eighth game in the following doubles to settle the debate.  

Today was my first match in this competition in Stage 2, so for sure its a very important match. Against France, I played the second match, and won 3-0 for Romania, as I wanted to give the team more advantage. I focused on every set, and tried to find the best tactics that I could play today with my coach. My game was very good, I was very stable and clear in my head. Adina Diaconu