Korea’s 28 year old Dang Ye Seo won the first Women’s Singles title
of her career on the ITTF Pro Tour, when she succeeded at the Belarus
Open in Minsk on Sunday 31st May 2009; in four straight games she beat
Li Xue of France to capture the top prize.
The Korean, who had
reached the quarter-finals of the Women’s Singles event at the recent
H.I.S. World Championships following a dramatic victory of Li Jiao of
the Netherlands, was in control from start to finish against the
defensive skills of the French player.
Adept
Furthermore she should be adept against backspin play.
She
was a member of the Korean team that won the bronze medal at the 2008
Beijing Olympic Games, lining up alongside Kim Kyung Ah and Park Mi
Young; arguably the best two female defensive players in the world.
Having colleagues most proficient in the art of backspin play, practice against that style is no problem!
In
Minsk, that practice came to fruition; seeded no.3, Dang Ye Se
succeeded in the final by the margin of 11-5, 11-3, 14-12, 11-8.
Delighted
"It
is my first title on the Pro Tour, I am very happy", said Dang Ye Seo.
"The most difficult match in the tournament was the semi-final, I’ve
played Liu Jia before and both won and lost; in the final I was
nervous; it was our first meeting; my preparation for the tournament
was good and I’m in good condition now.
Best Performance
The
victory at the Stag Belarus Open is by some distance the best
performance gained by Dang Ye Seo in Women’s Singles events on the ITTF
Pro Tour; her previous best being the third round in Qatar, Japan and
Korea in 2008.
Li Xue
Meanwhile,
for Li Xue, seeded no.7, it was her best Women’s Singles finish on the
ITTF Pro Tour; the previous best was a quarter-final place in 2006 in
Serbia and Poland.
In Minsk it was two steps further but just
one short of gold; that medal went to dang Ye Seo, the 2009 Belarus
Open Women’s Singles champion.
Source: www.ittf.com
