National Games: Shang Juncheng and Zhou Yi lead youth teams to the top four in men’s and women’s group competitions

On November 10th Beijing time, the team tennis competition of the 15th National Games entered its second day at Hengqin International Tennis Center. In men’s teams, the top three seeds Jiangsu, Guangxi, and Hong Kong secured their places in the semifinals, while the fourth spot went to Beijing, captained by Shang Juncheng. For the women’s teams, the top four seeds Beijing, Tianjin, Hubei, and Zhejiang all made it to the final four. On November 11th, the team semifinals will commence.

Zhou Yi

The first match on the center court was a men’s team quarterfinal, where Zhou Yi came back from behind to defeat Chen Ye 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-0. Then Chen Shijie defeated Ding Chuan 7-5, 6-1, helping Guangxi lead Hubei 2-0. In the semifinals, they will face Beijing, who beat Tianjin 2-0. Shang Juncheng opened for Beijing with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Gao Zihan, giving Beijing an early lead. Afterwards, Qi Hongjin secured the victory by defeating Lu Hanlei 7-6(6), 6-3.

Chen Ye

“If I hadn’t fought hard in the first set, I might not have reached the third set. At that point, I just aimed to keep the score close. Today I played my best tennis, but unfortunately, I couldn’t maintain that level until the end,” Chen Ye reflected positively on the match: “He is ranked higher than me and is someone I look up to in many aspects. Everyone plays under pressure; it’s about who can handle it better. Matches like this help me gain confidence when facing higher-ranked players in singles.”

Chen Ye and Zhou Yi

Zhou Yi also praised Chen Ye’s performance highly: “He was flawless in the first set. By the third set, I wondered why he didn’t retire, but from his perspective, if I were him, I wouldn’t quit either. He fought for every point until the end. I respect his effort today and hope he stays healthy and continues to improve.”

In his second National Games appearance, Zhou Yi was impressed by the younger players’ performances: “Shang Juncheng and I are among the oldest, while many players are born in 2007, 2008, or even 2009 and 2010. I think they are already playing better at that age than I did.”

Shang Juncheng

Shang Juncheng and Gao Zihan

In a post-match interview, Shang Juncheng said: “Everyone starts from the same baseline on the same court, so the skill levels are quite similar. The key is to focus on yourself. Of course, he might have dropped a bit in quality later, possibly due to fitness, but overall, both played well. His overall playing style is very well-rounded.”

Xu Kuangqing

Wang Zifu

Top seed Jiangsu defeated Shanxi 2-0: Xu Kuangqing beat Duan Hao 6-1, 6-2, and Hu Jia defeated Shi Mingrui 6-1, 6-3. As Jiangsu’s top male singles player, when asked who he most wanted to face, Xu Kuangqing answered decisively: “Shang Juncheng and Zhou Yi!” If he wins one more match, Xu will get that chance. In the semifinals, they will face third seed Hong Kong, who advanced by Wang Zifu and Zhu Kaihong’s singles wins over Hebei, with scores of Wang Zifu 6-2, 6-2 against Zhao Fanyu and Zhu Kaihong 6-4, 6-0 against Pan Yanshuo.

Shi Han

Qu Yihan

In the women’s team event, Shi Han led 7-5, 6-7(3), 1-0 when her opponent Luo Xi retired due to injury. Shao Yushan narrowly defeated Zhang Xuetong 6-3, 6-7(7), 7-6(3), helping top seed Beijing beat Sichuan 2-0. The match between Jiangxi and Zhejiang was fiercely contested: Zhu Chenting defeated Zou Ruirui 6-1, 6-3, Qu Yihan swept Liu Yuqi 6-1, 6-0, and in the crucial doubles, Ye Shiyu/Yang Ran beat Hou Yanan/Han Jingyi 6-1, 6-2, securing the fourth semifinal spot for fourth seed Zhejiang.

Hubei Women’s Team

Sun Yingqun

Third seed Hubei defeated Shanghai 2-0, powered by singles wins from Wei Zhangqian and Geng Xinle: Wei Zhangqian won 6-1, 6-3 against Chen Yiru, and Geng Xinle triumphed 7-5, 5-7, 7-5 over Ge Lingyou. In the semifinals, they will face second seed Tianjin, who defeated Hunan 2-0 with Sun Yingqun beating Xiao Lexue 6-1, 6-4 and Lan Xiran overcoming Dong Qianyu 6-2, 6-2.

Complete Schedule for November 11

On November 11, the team tennis semifinals of the 15th National Games will take place. In the men’s semifinals, Beijing led by Shang Juncheng will face Guangxi led by Zhou Yi in the first match on center court; the other semifinal will be between Jiangsu and Hong Kong. The women’s semifinals will see Beijing with Shi Han against Zhejiang with Qu Yihan, and Tianjin facing Hubei.

Updated Draws

(Image source: Press and Broadcasting Department of the Tennis Competition Committee, 15th National Games)