The WTT Singapore Smash 2023 has been nothing short of excitement so far, know all the latest results and score
Monday’s games saw, local talent Izaac Quek register his biggest career win with a dramatic 3-2 comeback win against Sweden’s Mattias Falck.
Izaac was initially down 2-0 before coming back strong, to win three consecutive games securing a 3rd round spot.
WTT Singapore Smash table tennis 2023 singles and doubles results today and live score
0-2 ➡️ 3-2 🔥
Home favourite Izaac Quek takes down Mattias Falck for a spot in the TOP 16!
Get your tickets now 👉🎟️ https://t.co/j8251BXRdZ#AGrandNewLegacyBegins pic.twitter.com/5YdhBsUSQs
— World Table Tennis (@WTTGlobal) March 13, 2023
Izaac Quek speaks about his win, what it was like playing at home here at #SingaporeSmash and what awaits him next 🎤 #AGrandNewLegacyBegins pic.twitter.com/KXjgu6FLb6
— World Table Tennis (@WTTGlobal) March 13, 2023
The match took place at the OCBC Arena on 13 March, with hundreds of local table tennis fans enthralled to watch their local stars.
Izaac Quek registers dramatic comeback win over Mattias Falck
Team Singapore’s Izaac Quek who is currently ranked world number 242, scored his biggest-ever career win against Sweden’s Mattias Falck. Falck is currently ranked world number 36 and the 2021 World Championship Doubles gold medallist.
However, Izaac never showed signs of backing down as he came back from 2 games down to claim an impressive 3-2 win. At the end, the score was a 6-11, 3-11, 11-7, 11-9, 12-10. Prior to the match, 16-year-old Izaac won against Sharath Kamal Achanta, the world number 56 and reigning Commonwealth Games Gold medalist, on Saturday (11 March).
31-year-old Mattias is currently one of the few forehand short-pimpled players in professional men’s table tennis. He gained recognition after winning Silver at the ITTF World Championships 2019. While doing so, he became the first Swedish player to reach the Men’s Singles Finals since 1997.
Mattias’ unique playing style with quick and sudden forehand attacks caught the TeamSG athlete off-guard on several occasions. The young teenager struggled to cope with the world number 36’s pace, which saw him lose the first 2 games.
However, Izaac soon changed tactics and focused on adding more quality to his forehand attacks, causing some problems for Mattias. The change in tactics along with variations in his serve and backhand locations made Mattias to make more unforced errors. Meanwhile, Izaac grew more confident and relaxed and went on to win the next 2 games, forcing a decider.
The crowd went wild at the sight of the youngster making a comeback at the Infinity Arena. In the final game, Izaac eventually came back from 10-8 down, to win 12-10, taking the overall victory 3-2.
The Indian challenge at the Singapore Smash 2023 came to an end after Manika Batra lost both of her women’s doubles and mixed doubles matches, partnering Archana Kamath and Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, at the Singapore Sports Hub on Tuesday.
Manika Batra, India’s leading women’s singles table tennis player, and partner G Sathiyan lost 3-2 (9-11, 9-11, 11-8, 11-5, 7-11) in the mixed doubles quarter-finals to Japan’s Tomokazu Harimoto and Hina Hayata, both world championships silver medallists.
Mixed Doubles events
Meanwhile, in the mixed doubles events, TeamSG’s Clarence Chew and Zeng Jian lost out to India’s Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Manika Batra. The Indian pair won with a score of 3-1 (11-7, 12-10, 9-11, 11-3) in the Round of 16.
Clarence and Zeng Jian are currently the world number 94. They are the reigning Silver and Bronze medalists at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games and Commonwealth Games respectively.
Singapore’s hopes rest on Koen Pang and Izaac
Following 3 days of main draw matches, TeamSG’s hopes in the ongoing $2 million event now rest on Koen Pang and Izaac. Koen, who won the 2019 SEA Games gold medal will take on Germany’s Qiu Dang at 7pm on 14 March. The two will compete in the Round of 32 of the Men’s Singles event.
Meanwhile, 16-year-old Izaac will now face world number 3 Wang Chuqin for a quarter-finals berth. In the Men’s doubles, Koen and Izaac will go up against Chinese superstars Fan Zhendong and Chuqin in the Round of 16.
Results summary of TeamSG players on 13 March:
Fixture | Results |
Men’s Singles | |
Izaac Quek (SGP) vs Mattias Falck (SWE) | 3:2 (6-11, 3-11, 11-7, 11-9, 12-10) |
Men’s Doubles | |
Koen Pang/Izaac Quek (SGP) vs Clarence Chew/Ethan Poh (SGP) | 3:1 (11-7, 10-12, 11-3, 11-5) |
Mixed Doubles | |
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran/Manika Batra (IND) vs Clarence Chew/Zeng Jian (SGP) | 3:1 (11-7, 12-10, 9-11, 11-3) |
Women’s Doubles | |
Lily Zhang/Amy Wang (USA) vs Ser Lin Qian/Zhou Jingyi (SGP) | 3:1 (12-10, 7-11, 11-7, 11-5) |
Lee Ho Ching/Chen Szu-Yu (HKG/TPE) vs Goi Rui Xuan/Wong Xin Ru (SGP) | 3:1 (9-11, 11-9, 11-3, 11-7) |
Shan Xiaona/Nagasaki Miyu (GER/JPN) vs Loy Ming Ying/Chloe Lai (SGP) | 3:0 (11-8, 11-6, 11-6) |
Singapore Smash 2023
The Singapore Smash 2023 is currently taking place at the OCBC Arena. The tournament features 64 men’s and women’s singles players, and 24-pair doubles, and mixed competitions. Prior to the competition, a singles qualifying competition took place, featuring a further 64 men and 64 women from 7-9 March.