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Unified Korean men's doubles team reaches table tennis semifinals

All News 11:47 July 20, 2018

SEOUL, July 20 (Yonhap) -- A unified Korean men's doubles team reached the semifinals of an international table tennis tournament in South Korea on Friday, securing at least a bronze medal.

The duo of Lee Sang-su (South Korea) and Pak Sin-hyok (North Korea) edged out Liang Jingkun and Yan An of China 3-2 (11-9, 13-11, 3-11, 4-11, 11-7) in the quarterfinals at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Tour Platinum Korea Open in Daejeon, 160 kilometers south of Seoul.

Pak Sin-hyok of North Korea (L) and Lee Sang-su of South Korea celebrate their victory over Liang Jingkun and Yan An of China in the men's doubles semifinals at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Tour Platinum Korea Open at Chungmu Sports Arena in Daejeon, 160 kilometers south of Seoul, on July 20, 2018. (Yonhap)

Pak Sin-hyok of North Korea (L) and Lee Sang-su of South Korea celebrate their victory over Liang Jingkun and Yan An of China in the men's doubles semifinals at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Tour Platinum Korea Open at Chungmu Sports Arena in Daejeon, 160 kilometers south of Seoul, on July 20, 2018. (Yonhap)

They're one of four pan-Korean doubles teams assembled at this tournament. In the mixed doubles, Jang Woo-jin (South Korea) and Cha Hyo-sim (North Korea) reached the semifinals on Thursday, while the other tandem, Choe Il (North) and Yoo Eun-chong (South), lost in the round of 16. The women's doubles team of Suh Hyo-won (South) and Kim Song-i (North) also fell in the round of 16.

In the men's doubles semifinals, scheduled for later Friday, Lee and Pak will take on Ho Kwan Kit and Wong Chun Ting of Hong Kong.

After taking the first two games against the Chinese, Lee and Pak conceded the next two while winning just seven points combined. But they bounced back to win the decisive fifth game 11-7 to finish off the match in about 40 minutes.

Also in the men's doubles quarters, South Korea's Jang Woo-jin and Lim Jong-hoon defeated Koki Niwa and Jin Ueda of Japan 3-1 (12-10, 5-11, 11-8, 11-4). Jang and Lim will face Wang Chuqin and Xue Fei of China in the semis.

In other matches early Friday, Jeon Ji-hee and Yang Ha-eun of South Korea advanced to the women's doubles semifinals, as did the North Korean team of Cha Hyo-sim and Kim Nam-hae.

The two teams are at the opposite end of the draw, meaning they will meet in the final if they both win their semifinal matches later Friday.

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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