TAIPEI (TVBS News) — The World Table Tennis (WTT) Finals will kick off Wednesday (Nov. 20) in Fukuoka, Japan, where Taiwan's Lin Yun-ju (林昀儒) faces Germany's Qiu Dang (邱黨) for a spot in the quarterfinals. Lin, ranked 13th globally, will compete in his fourth WTT Finals, aiming to surpass his best finish of reaching the quarterfinals in 2022.
After reaching the WTT Champions Frankfurt 2024 semifinals, Lin switched to Japan's Nojima T.LEAGUE for training. Lin has a favorable record against Qiu, having won their last two encounters, including a five-set battle in Frankfurt.
If Lin advances, he will face either 19-year-old Chinese rising star Lin Shidong (林詩棟) or France's Alexis Lebrun. Lin Shidong has won five men's singles titles since September.
In the women's competition, Cheng I-ching (鄭怡靜) will challenge China's Wang Yidi (王藝迪), ranked third. Cheng has struggled against Wang, losing all five previous matches, four of which were straight-set defeats.
The 2024 WTT Finals boast a total prize pool of US$700,000, with the singles champion earning US$40,000 and 1,500 ranking points.
