World Table Tennis China Smash: Ma Long beats Brazil’s Hugo Calderano to reach the last 4
In what is likely to be his final international event, world No 6 is two wins away from landing his first singles title on the WTT Series
Table tennis fans worldwide have been guaranteed at least one more chance to watch the evergreen Ma Long play on the international stage after the sport’s most decorated player made his way into the semi-final of the World Table Tennis (WTT) China Smash in Beijing on Friday.
The legendary Ma eased past world No 3 Hugo Calderano in style, sending the Brazilian packing with a convincing 4-0 win on home soil to extend his unbeaten streak over the 28-year-old from Rio de Janeiro to six matches.
Widely regarded as one of the best to grace the sport, Ma arrived in the capital with only one goal on his mind: to win his maiden WTT Grand Smash singles title.
And with Friday’s win, he is now two wins away from landing his first singles title on the WTT Series.
Calderano, a three-time Pan American Games singles champion, has never got the better of Ma in five previous career meetings, and that remains the case after the pair’s first encounter in mainland China, with the highest-ranked non-Chinese player going down in straight sets – 11-7, 11-4, 11-7, 11-7 – in just under 35 minutes.
Ma said after the match that it had gone “more smoothly than I thought”.
