Frenchman Alexis Lebrun started the WTT Finals with a solid victory against German Dang Qiu this Wednesday in Hong Kong. But the next round promises to be tough with a big match against the world number 1.
A very solid start. Frenchman Alexis Lebrun qualified this Wednesday for the quarter-finals of the WTT Finals, the equivalent of the Masters in table tennis, by beating German Dang Qiu (4-1) in Hong Kong. The Montpellier player, 10th in the world, only lost the first set before managing to dominate his opponent of the day (9th): 8-11, 11-7, 11-9, 12-10, 11-8.
World No. 1 in the next round?
In this end-of-season tournament, which brings together the 16 best players in the WTT rankings for men and women, Alexis Lebrun could have a lot to do to reach the last four.
The eldest of the “Glasses Brothers” will cross paths with Chinese world number 1 Wang Chuqin in the next round, the singles title holder and winner this season of four tournaments including two Grand Smashes (equivalent to Grand Slams). The Chinese struggled to win in style against the Japanese Sora Matsushima and after being led three sets to one (6-11, 9-11, 11-4, 12-14, 12-10, 11-4, 11-9).
Asked about his victory against an opponent who gave the five best in the world a lot of trouble, Alexis Lebrun was delighted with his good form. “I don’t know (why he does well against him), I like playing against him,” he said. “But it's never easy. I haven't beaten him five times in a row because I think I lost twice at club level but I'm very happy to win this match.”
“I was able to work on other things”
He also spoke about his year 2025 marked by injuries and a return to form. “I didn't really have the choice to take a break but I was able to work on things other than my table tennis during this period without being able to play. I wanted to play well at the end of the season and I'm very happy.”
Two other Frenchmen, Félix Lebrun and Simon Gauzy, will enter the competition on Thursday, respectively against the Brazilian Hugo Calderano and the Japanese Tomokazu Harimoto.
