Wales’ Anna Hursey defeated the world junior champion on her way to reaching the semi-finals of the WTT Feeder Otocec in Slovenia.
Hursey (pictured above), part of the GB performance pathway, is the 16th seed at the event and started with a 3-2 win over Italy’s Debora Vivarelli (WR 131).
World No 125 Hursey then beat Japan’s Kaho Akae (WR 137) – who had earlier knocked out the top seed Sakura Yokoi – 3-2 (7-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-9, 11-7) to set up a quarter-final against world junior champion Annett Kaufmann of Germany (WR 145).
The score in that was 3-0 (11-6, 12-10, 11-9) as Hursey advanced to a semi-final against third seed Hitomi Sato.
That was where her run ended this morning as her opponent, a defender ranked 74 in the world, dominated to win 3-0 (11-3, 11-2, 11-3).
English involvement at event was short-lived as Tin-Tin Ho, Tom Jarvis and Paul Drinkhall all went out in their opening matches.
Ho was up against Germany’s Sophie Klee, ranked 10 places above her at 233 in the world, in the last 64. Ho went 4-1 up early on but seven points in a row turned the game in Klee’s favour. Ho saved three game points but Klee completed the game 12-10.
The second saw Klee win the first six points on her way to taking the game 11-6 and, after Ho led the third 4-1, Klee got on another roll with 10 successive points to complete victory.
Jarvis (WR 151) was up against Marcelo Aguirre of Paraguay, ranked 12 places below him. He started well, taking both the first and third games as he pulled away from 3-3 in each.
Aguirre, who won the second, turned it around from 7-7 in the fourth with four successive points and, in the decider, took seven consecutive points from 2-2 on his way to victory.
Drinkhall, now ranked 175, took on South Korea’s Kim Minhyeok (WR 141) and runs of points was also a theme in his match as Kim won seven in a row from 4-3 down on his way to taking the first 11-5. He then doubled his advantage as he took a 5-0 lead in the second, which he won 11-3.
Drinkhall himself came from 8-4 down to 9-8 up in winning the third 11-9, but a run of five by Kim from 5-5 in the fourth saw the match all but over – he won the game 11-6.
Liam Pitchford pulled out on the eve of the event with a minor injury.
In the Women’s Doubles, Ho & Hursey lost in the first qualifying round to Huang Yu-Chiao & Huang Hsin of Chinese Taipei.
Results
Men’s Singles
Round of 64
Marcelo Aguirre (PAR) bt Tom Jarvis 3-2 (9-11, 11-4, 7-11, 11-7, 11-4)
Kim Minhyeok (KOR) bt Paul Drinkhall 3-1 (11-5, 11-3, 9-11, 11-6)
Women’s Singles
Round of 64
Sophie Klee (GER) bt Tin-Tin Ho 3-0 (12-10, 11-6, 11-4)
Women’s Doubles
Qualifying round 1
Huang Yu-Chiao & Huang Hsin bt Tin-Tin HO & Anna Hursey (WAL) 3-1 (11-9, 7-11, 11-9, 11-3)
