Now that you know the background of the Chinese National Games and athletes who have qualified to the main draw, we can move on each of the events, starting from the mixed doubles (catch up the CNG intro here).
Competition Format
The mixed doubles event consists of a knockout format, starting from the round of 16. Every match is played under a best of 5 games format except the semifinals and finals which are played under a best of 7 games format.
The Draw
The top 16 pairs of mixed doubles at the preliminary round qualify for the main round of the Chinese National Games. The main draw is based on the order of the preliminary round held in late March.
The
The no.1 seed of the mixed doubles event is a new combination having Fan Zhendong (PLA) pairing up with Zhu Yuling (Sichuan). Thanks to the mixed-provinces pairing policy which athletes can pair up across provinces in doubles events, the 2 players who are the singles runner-up at 2017 WTTC and Tokyo Olympics hopefuls form a strong mixed doubles pair together. If the chemistry between them is shown to be effective, we might see the pair playing mixed doubles 3 years later in Tokyo Olympics. This explains the potential and strength of the pair.
Let's have a look at the debut of the no.1 seed, Fan Zhendong and Zhu Yuling in the preliminary round! This was the first and only mixed doubles match played by the pairs in the preliminary round held in late March. In the match they played against Yin Jiaxu and Guo Yichen from Team Zhejiang. Apparently, there are some distance between the level of skills of the 2 pairs, the playing style is also one of the limitations, and the match ended quickly. Nonetheless with World champion Wang Hao and Qiu Yike coaching by the court, no wonder the pairs qualified to the main round with few challenges.
Fan Zhendong / Zhu Yuling (PLA / Sichuan) Vs. Yin Jiaxu / Guo Yichen (Zhejiang)
Other names to look out for in the top half of the draw include Liang Jingkun (Hebei) and Wen Jia (Liaoning). Liang Jingkun is one of the young athletes from the men's team who has many opportunities to compete internationally in 2017 (the only Chinese man who has played in 4 World Tour). His style sometimes reminds us of Fan Zhendong who has powerful backhand flip. However he lacks varieties in his games and does not have outstanding doubles results under his belt. Wen Jia is a left-handed shakehander who uses short-pips in her backhand. Her forehand counter loop and backhand smash cross the court are some of her signature moves. She is the 2008 National women's single champion and 11th (2009) Chinese National Games mixed doubles champion partnering Wang Hao. Will experience win over the young pairs? Time will tell.
In the top half of the draw, we can also expect to see some great matches from Hao Shuai (Tianjin) and Wang Yidi (Yunan). Hao Shuai was the 2007 mixed doubles national champion partnering the young star at that time, Liu Shiwen. He has been active in CTTSL in the past few years after retiring from the national team in 2013 and has proved himself in the preliminary round early this year. It will be interesting to see how he would cope with the 20-year-old Wang Yidi who has recently demoted to the B team in the internal competition.
In the bottom half of the draw, we have Lin Gaoyuan and Liu Shiwen, the no.2 seed of the tournament, also the 2016 Chinese Nationals mixed doubles champion representing Team Guangdong. In 2016, they won over the 12th Chinese National Games mixed doubles champion, Ma Long and Ding Ning who are both grand-slam players to secure Guangdong's first Chinese National Championships mixed doubles champion in 40 years.
Challenging them for the title, Zhou Yu and Mu Zi, representing Team PLA will be looking to take down the no.2 seed in the quarterfinals. Mu Zi is the 2015 Chinese Nationals mixed doubles champion partnering Fan Zhendong who is also from Team PLA. Whereas Zhou Yu did not have outstanding mixed doubles results in the past nationals but he won the mixed double champion in 2017 Asian Championships partnering Chen Xingtong.
Zhou Yu and Mu Zi may not have won many titles together, they have strong ability in playing powerful rallies and doubles. Lin Gaoyuan and Liu Shiwen must take advantage of their speed and their first three ball contacts in order to have an edge over the pairs from Team PLA.
Shown below is the 2016 Chinese Nationals Mixed Doubles Final where Lin Gaoyuan and Liu Shiwen walked away with the mixed doubles champion. See how fast the Guangdong pairs were, without a doubt they are the favorites of the 13th Games.
Where the field is packed with well-known, experienced players, keep an eye on the young pair, Yu Ziyang and Wang Manyu representing Heilongjiang. They are the mixed doubles bronze medalist in 2016 Chinese National Championships. We have not seen Yu Ziyang internationally since 2014 Japan Open where he defeated Japanese top player, Jun Mizutani. However he has been the main force of Team Heilongjiang and Anhui Langkun Club last year and has some decent results. Whereas Wang Manyu the promising young athlete has shown up internationally in World Tours and T2 APAC tournament. The Chinese National Games is also known as the stage of the youth as many rising stars emerge in the Games such as Zhang Yining in 2001, Ma Long in 2005 and Fan Zhendong in 2013. It wouldn't be surprised if the young pairs ended up on the podium.
Here is the mixed doubles semifinals at 2016 Chinese Nationals where Yu Ziyang and Wang Manyu played against the Beijing pair, Ma Long and Ding Ning.
Finally, another mixed-provinces pair that we should follow is Yan An (Beijing) and Gu Yuting (Shandong). If you have followed the World Tours in 2017, you should have heard of Yan An, the men's singles champion at the Hungary Open and Gu Yuting who defeated Miu Hirano at the Australia Open. Their ability in the singles is beyond all question but how about doubles? Yan An partnered Ding Ning back in 2009, the 11th Chinese National Games and won bronze in mixed doubles. He was also the 2014 mixed doubles national champion partnering Sheng Dandan. While Gu Yuting won silver with Mu Zi in women's doubles at the 2015 National Championships. Can 1 plus 1 exceeds 2? We will know the answer when the matches are played.
The field is a mix of new pairs and long-time partnerships and the podium is pretty wide open. After all, table tennis ball is round, anything can happen.
Follow the Mixed Doubles
The detailed competition schedule has announced (check the detailed schedule here). The mixed doubles competition is scheduled on 2 September and 3 September and CCTV5 is very likely to broadcast the competition. We will keep you updated as soon as the broadcast plan are announced.
Event Schedule
Day 6: September 2
14:30-15:30 Mixed Doubles Round of 16
15:30-16:30 Mixed Doubles Quarterfinals
Day 7: September 3
10:00-10:45 Mixed Doubles Semifinals
19:45-20:15 Mixed Doubles Bronze Medal Match
20:15-21:30 Mixed Doubles Final
For more updates, follow the blog by clicking the button on the right-hand column or check the official website of the Chinese National Games here. Feel free to comment below (anonymous comment is acceptable) and let us know who do you think will walk away with the mixed doubles title!
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