China Smash: Zhou Qihao reaches first Grand Smash semi-final and will face Sora Matsushima in Beijing

Zhou Qihao is the last Chinese man left in the singles at the WTT China Smash. The 14th seed beat South Korea's Jang Woo-jin 4-2 in a close quarter-final at Beijing's Shougang Park on Friday. That puts him in his first Grand Smash semi-final, where he will play Japan's Sora Matsushima. The other two men's quarter-finals are played on Saturday, and the event ends on Sunday 11 October.

This follows our earlier report on Zhou's last-16 win over Tomokazu Harimoto and Orawan Paranang's upset of Sun Yingsha. This piece covers the men's quarter-finals and the doubles.

Zhou holds his nerve against Jang

The game scores were 12-10, 8-11, 4-11, 11-9, 14-12, 11-6. Jang, the ninth seed, won the second and third games to lead 2-1. Zhou levelled at 2-2. The fifth game went to extra points, and Zhou won it 14-12 to take a 3-2 lead, then won the sixth easily.

Zhou has pulled off several comebacks this week. In the round of 32 he came from two games down to beat compatriot Xiang Peng 3-2 and saved two match points along the way. He then beat third seed Harimoto 3-0, his first win in three meetings with the Japanese player. He was the only Chinese man in the last eight, so he now carries the home nation's hopes in the singles.

Matsushima cruises through

Matsushima, the second seed, beat Chinese Taipei's Feng Yi-hsin 4-1 in his quarter-final. Feng was seeded 38th and had beaten the Netherlands' Wim Verdonschot to get there. Matsushima had already beaten Kuo Guan-hong 3-1 in the last 16, winning three of the four games by a comfortable margin.

Lebrun v Calderano and Moregard v Lin on Saturday

The top half of the draw is unfinished. Top seed Felix Lebrun of France plays Brazil's Hugo Calderano, the sixth seed. Sweden's Truls Moregard, seeded fourth, faces Lin Yun-ju of Chinese Taipei, seeded fifth. Swedish broadcaster listings put both matches around lunchtime on Saturday, Beijing time. Beijing is in the same time zone as Malaysia, so the matches start around 1pm to 2pm Malaysia time. Those results were still to come when this was written.

Moregard needed five games to beat China's Wen Ruibo in the last 16. Lebrun beat Croatia's Tomislav Pucar 3-0, and Calderano beat Germany's Patrick Franziska 3-0.

According to Swedish broadcast schedules, the men's semi-finals are planned for Sunday around midday. The final is planned for about 5pm Beijing and Malaysia time.

Lebrun brothers into the doubles final

Felix and Alexis Lebrun beat home pair Wen Ruibo and Yuan Licen 3-1 to reach the men's doubles final. They will play South Korea's Lim Jong-hoon and Oh Jun-sung. The fourth-seeded Koreans beat India's second seeds, Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah, 11-8, 11-6, 11-3.

Lim had already won a title on Friday. He and Shin Yu-bin won the mixed doubles final against Lin Yun-ju and Cheng I-ching, so Lim can win a second gold in Beijing.

What the China Smash is

The China Smash is one of the WTT Grand Smash events, the top level of the World Table Tennis tour, and it is the last Grand Smash of the 2026 season. Wen Ruibo and Xiang Peng were among the Chinese men knocked out before the quarter-finals. That left Zhou as China's only player in the last eight, which makes his run especially important for the host nation.

Key takeaways

• Zhou Qihao beat Jang Woo-jin 4-2 to reach his first Grand Smash semi-final.
• Zhou will play second seed Sora Matsushima, who beat Feng Yi-hsin 4-1.
• Felix Lebrun v Hugo Calderano and Truls Moregard v Lin Yun-ju were scheduled for Saturday lunchtime in Beijing.
• The Lebrun brothers play Lim Jong-hoon and Oh Jun-sung in the men's doubles final.
• The men's singles final is planned for Sunday around 5pm Malaysia time.

FAQ

Who is Zhou Qihao playing in the semi-final? He plays Japan's Sora Matsushima, the second seed. The semi-final is scheduled for Sunday 11 October.

Is any Chinese player left in the men's singles? Yes, Zhou Qihao is the only one. He was the only Chinese player to reach the quarter-finals.

What time is the China Smash men's final in Malaysia? Swedish broadcast schedules list the final for about 5pm on Sunday, Beijing time. That is also 5pm in Malaysia, but the start depends on the order of play.

Sources: China Daily, Xinhua, IANS, Infinity Sport, WTT draw, Hurbra