China’s women hail team bond in hard-fought win

Comeback victory over Japan in opening match of final key to securing fifth gold, players say

China players said the comeback victory over Japan in the opening doubles match of the women’s team final was the key to winning their fifth Olympic gold medal on Saturday.

Sun Yingsha and Wang Manyu also admitted Japan’s performance was better than they expected, as China battled to a hard-fought victory at the South Paris Arena.

Chen Meng, 30, the women’s singles champion, said even the very first point of the tie had been “vital because it was all about a good start”.

“A win could give us better morale and momentum in the later matches,” she said.

The opening doubles encounter against Hina Hayata and Miwa Harimoto could have gone either way, with the Japanese pair just two points away from drawing first blood at one stage.

“On the brink of losing the first match, what supported us was the desire to win, and the belief to win it for the team,” Chen said.

Sun, 23, said the opening win had given her an extra boost going into the first singles clash of the final against Miu Hirano.

And Sun needed all that confidence after almost dropping the first game before winning 13-11, 11-6, 11-6.

“Taking the first point was crucial for it lifted my self-confidence, though I almost lost my first game still,” she said. “Miu Hirano played exceptionally well; the rhythm and quality of her shots exceeded my expectations.

“But I never gave up and crawled back slowly, I believe I did well and accomplished the mission my coach had given me. I hope I can continue to play like this after the Olympics.”

Wang, who partnered Chen in the doubles before snatching another point for China, said it was an “uneasy” win in the doubles after they twice fell behind.

“Probably only those who played in the match would understand the difficulty,” the two-time Olympic team champion said.

“I cried after winning the last point, but it was my back facing the camera so perhaps it wasn’t captured.

On the brink of losing the first match, what supported us was the desire to win CHEN MENG, WOMEN’S SINGLES CHAMPION

“It was a great start and a key step to building our momentum; I felt the most difficult moments had passed with the 2-0 lead.

“I expected a tough encounter with Miwa Harimoto and the way the match developed was normal, I just kept my patience and my teammates also gave me some advice. I felt happy with the gold medal.”

It was Chen’s fourth gold, having won singles and team titles in Tokyo and Paris, and the world No 2 took time to thank her teammates. “We were fierce competitors over the last three years, but we were also close teammates who loved each other so much,” she said.

“In the end, we needed to stick together to show what Chinese table tennis teams are made of.”