Wang Manyu retains China Smash women's singles title with 4-0 win over Japanese chopper Hitomi Sato
Wang Manyu swept Japan's Hitomi Sato 4-0 in Beijing to defend her China Smash crown and win a fourth WTT Grand Smash singles title.
China's Wang Manyu defended her WTT China Smash women's singles title in Beijing on Sunday, 11 October, sweeping Japan's Hitomi Sato 4-0 in the final. It was Wang's fourth WTT Grand Smash singles crown, and she also retained the women's doubles title with Kuai Man during the same event. This follows on from our semi-final round-up, which covered Wang and Sato reaching the final.
A one-sided final
Wang set the tone immediately, taking the opening game 11-2. Sato, a defensive chopper, made the second game far closer. The expedite rule came into force with Wang leading 9-8, and she won the next two points to take it 11-8, according to Xinhua.
Wang then ran away with the third game 11-3 and closed out the match in the fourth to finish without dropping a game.
Wang admitted afterwards that she was surprised by the scoreline but said her approach had worked: "I had a stable mindset and resolutely executed my tactics."
She also said she had carried momentum from the recent Asian Games into the Beijing event.
Sato's history-making run
Although she was well beaten in the final, Sato's week was still significant. Xinhua reported that she is the first chopper to reach a WTT Grand Smash final, a rare achievement for a player who relies on heavy backspin defence in a sport dominated by attacking styles.
In the semi-finals, Sato recovered from losing the first game 11-2 to beat China's Chen Xingtong 4-1. Wang reached the final by beating Japan's Miwa Harimoto, also 4-1.
Head-to-head and revenge
The final carried an extra edge. Wang had a 6-1 lead in their head-to-head record before Sunday. The one defeat came about three months earlier at WTT United States Smash, where Sato beat her 3-0 in the round of 32. Sunday's result emphatically reversed that.
Under the event's published prize breakdown, the singles champion earns US$135,000 and the runner-up US$68,000.
China Smash finals at a glance
The men's singles title went to Japan's Sora Matsushima, who beat Lin Yun-ju of Chinese Taipei 4-3. China finished with two of the five titles, both won by Wang: the women's singles and the women's doubles. South Korea's Lim Jong-hoon took the other two doubles titles, the mixed with Shin Yu-bin and the men's with Oh Jun-sung.
Because Beijing and Malaysia share the same time zone, the finals were shown at the same local time for Malaysian viewers.
Key takeaways
- Wang Manyu beat Hitomi Sato 4-0 in the China Smash women's singles final on 11 October 2026.
- It is Wang's fourth WTT Grand Smash singles title, and she also kept the women's doubles title with Kuai Man.
- Sato became the first chopper to reach a WTT Grand Smash final, according to Xinhua.
- Wang avenged a 3-0 defeat to Sato at United States Smash three months earlier.
- China won two of the five titles in Beijing, both through Wang.
FAQ
Who won the China Smash 2026 women's singles? Wang Manyu of China, who beat Japan's Hitomi Sato 4-0 in the final in Beijing on 11 October 2026.
How many Grand Smash titles has Wang Manyu won? This was her fourth WTT Grand Smash singles title.
What is a chopper in table tennis? A defensive player who stands back from the table and returns the ball with heavy backspin, trying to force errors from attacking opponents.
Sources: Xinhua, China Daily, Butterfly, Infinity Sport, Wikipedia