July 8, 2010
Leading Names Conclude Opening Day in Style in Cairo
 Elena Troshneva in form in first phase in Cairo Photo By: Dr Stephan Roscher |
Courtesy of ITTF Earlier in the day, the fast attacking right hander had beaten the host nation’s Nadeen El-Dawlatly; thus she secured first place in the group and a place in the Main Draw. |
Equally, the second highest rated player in action, Hong Kong’s Ng Wing Nam ended the day on a high note.
Earlier in the day she had suffered defeat at the hands of Russia’s Valentina Sabitova; however, she recovered to beat Egypt’s Raghd Magdy in four straight games to end the day on a high note.
Hopes Alive
The win keeps hopes of a place in the main draw alive for Ng Wing Nam, with one match in the group (Valentina Sabitova versus Raghd Magdy) still to be played.
The main draw comprises 32 competitors; 16 players are seeded and are not required to play in the qualification stage, thus there are 16 places available; the 10 group winners progress automatically, thus leaving five spots.
In order to determine the remaining six places, the 10 second placed players compete in a Preliminary Round, the winners proceed to the main draw, thus leaving one place; that place is allocated to a “Lucky Loser” being drawn from one of the defeated players in the Preliminary Round.
A Reverse for Egypt
Success at the end of the day for Elena Troshneva and Ng Wing Nam but for the third highest listed in action it was defeat.
Egypt’s Sara El-Sokary was beaten by the rapidly improving 21 year old Katarzyna Grzbowska of Poland, a player who in Stuttgart in 2009 was a valued member of the Polish silver medal women’s team.
Two by Two
Problems for Sara El-Sokary but for the other principal names in action it was a day of two matches played, two matches won.
Alexandra Privalova and Alena Dubkova of Belarus, Linda Creemers and Carla Nouwen of the Netherlands plus the Indian duo of Mouma Das and Poulomi Ghatak plus Hong Kong’s Guan Meng Yuan all remained unbeaten.
| Download the latest Flash Player to view content. |